Delicious Revenge
by QianYun
Summary: Discont. -Misconceptions Sequel- When rumors of Sasuke and Naruto's love relationship spread through Konoha like a wildfire, the two enacts revenge the only way they know how. By giving them what they want... and taking it away.
1. The Nigglings of Rumors

**Disclaimer: **Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er-** After extreme pondering, I've made the sequel to _Misconceptions _a multi-chap. As I've figured out that as a one-shot, some details that you would want to know will be glossed over and the details you don't want will be elaborated, weird, huh? That and I couldn't figure out what beginning I wanted. So yeah.

As such, this came a little late, but I was determined to eek this out before chapter 229 of the manga came out, so I hope I've succeeded. Although few people will be able read this before it comes out, at least I'll upload it before it did, the translated version, I mean.

**Note:** This story is meant to be a humor fic, drawing little to nothing from the current chapters of the manga. It's written so that I can get over all the angst that seems to rampage through all the ff pages these days, although I have to admit, I haven't ventured into the main page for Naruto for some time. So remember, **humor story**.

**There will be several OCs sprinkled out through the story for the plot. But do not worry, most of them will only be in one chapter. Three appear in this chapter alone. The first and second may drop in once in a while. But the last one will remain nameless and will stay in this chapter. There will be warnings of OCs at the beginning of the chapters so you will not be surprised.**

**Warnings: Implications of Shounen-ai/Yaoi/Slash/Homosexuality in the beginning. Later on, it smacks you in the face. Please do not read if you are uncomfortable. This is your second, last, and only warning in this story.**

Thanks to: **Aurum** (for your comments on my dear, dear pen (although it seems to have revived as I wrote most of this chapter with the pen) and for making me snicker. And Kiba because he _is_ after all a 16 year-old boy hearing these noises without really comprehending that it was Naruto and Sasuke, as I said when I wrote that he had stopped thinking.) **Jenniyah **(for making me cackle evilly) **SasuNaru123 **(for making me smile when you said you liked these kind of stories) **Seito **(for being Seito, lol) **Iceheart19 **(for making me grin like an idiot) **Tricycle** (for being honest) **RukaIayLomperGay **(for your wonderful comments and for reading this first and telling me it was good) **Nanashi2 **(for giggling when you usually don't, and reminding me that I need to finish reading your story _The Trip_, which is great btw)

I tried to refrain from using Japanese words. In fact, I only use them when absolutely necessary, like I used kunoichi (female ninja), and stuff like that. Honorifics are also used because translating them or leaving them out seems wrong. But only when they speak out loud. Vague thoughts/narration, will not use 'em, too much typing at that point.

* * *

Delicious Revenge--- Chapter I --- The La/-/er

Sequel to Misconceptions

_**The Nigglings of Rumors**_

It was a pleasant day in Konoha. As the people mingled in the streets, birds chirped and leaves rustled. A slightly cool breeze blew through the nooks and crannies of the village, banishing most of the oppressive heat that threatened to settle upon the town. Varying voices cried out through the streets, creating a nice blending of sounds along with the other sensations felt that day.

Shops opened up cheerfully, students went to their respective schools, parents went off to their jobs and those not belonging in the aforementioned categories did their own little peaceful things. But through it all, rumors flew from mouth to mouth, ear to ear, person to person, building to building. The rumor that was to set the style of the events of the village for the next few months.

It had all started the day before - yes, the _day before_. For today was the dawning of a new morning and for two unsuspecting teenagers, a new nightmare.

If one was to start at the very beginning of this peculiar tale, one would have to start at the moment two teenage eavesdroppers - named Yamanaka Ino and Inuzuka Kiba - managed to somehow safely leave the residence of one Uzumaki Naruto, one of the boys previously mentioned to be waking up to a nightmare- or so it will seem anyway.

Continuing the story, we shall follow the proceedings of the teenagers - or rather, the female teenager, Ino; as the boy, Kiba, promptly went back to his house to think long and deep.

The mentioned girl, Ino, immediately left for the houses of two particular girls, Haruno Sakura and Hyuuga Hinata, the presidents of the Sasuke fan club and Naruto fan club respectively. Upon her arrival to the Haruno house she - without any words - dragged out the pink haired teenager and proceeded to lead the girl to a clearing near by. After leaving strict orders and pleas not to leave, Ino left the girl in confusion in search of their other, shyer partner.

Successfully leading the blank-eyed girl to the clearing, Ino immediately sat the two in front of her and began to haltingly speak.

Before she began, the two sitting teenagers had already formed their own thoughts. Two facts both of them observed caused them to panic.

(1) The presidents of the Sasuke and Naruto fan clubs were present. Including the only girl who didn't hold an interest in the two boys. **(1)**

(2) They were in the clearing that the two fanclubs had designated as the meeting point for when issues came up that involved both teenagers. After all, they were rivals/best friends.

And so, they panicked, thinking that (a) they were injured on a mission the two were sent on, completely ignoring the fact that they would've known if there was a mission and there _wasn't_ or (b) The two of them finally managed to beat up and seriously injure each other.

What they really heard, totally and completely shocked and stumped them.

"Now, before I start telling you the reason why I dragged the two of you out here, I want you to promise me something."

Ino began speaking with caution. While she knew Hinata was not prone to negative emotions, what she was about to tell them would still affect the shy-but-getting-bolder girl.

Sakura, on the other hand, was a completely different story. She was a spontaneous girl, especially with the presence of Inner Sakura, but there was little to no doubt that she was vocal about her opinions. She was particularly vocal when the topic was related to Uchiha Sasuke.

So, knowing this, Ino was determined to have Sakura do one thing. Which was to stay and listen to the whole story and then run her energy out at this spot. Ino didn't want the chance of Sakura storming out and ruining what seemed to be Naruto and Sasuke's budding romance.

"I want the two of you to stay and **listen**. I don't care what your initial reactions are, but I don't want the risk of the two of you ruining anything."

Ino said all of this quite strictly, wanting the two presidents to listen to her seriously.

Curious at the words spoken, the two infatuated girls nodded and gave their word on the honor of their kunoichi-hood.

Deeming it good enough for her, Ino began to tell her tale. The condensed version is: "I heard Naruto-kun and Sasuke-kun having sex and I am led to believe that they are in a relationship." The full, long story can be found in this story's prequel, _Misconceptions._

Now, those who were there with her, namely Kiba and the readers of the prequel, would be urged to disagree with the second part of her statement.

For to Kiba, while it was quite obvious that they were having sex, there was no indication that they were dating. In fact, if one thought about their words, it was almost definite that it was their first time. And looking deeper into their words, it seemed more like Sasuke was doing Naruto a favor.

But Kiba was not there, only Ino. And as such, the rumor of their relationship was now set. After all, such vital information of their two boys would have to be told to the boys' fan club and thus, would not and could not be kept quiet.

So as Ino finished her story-telling, the two girls could only sit in shock before bursting in movement. Well, Sakura had burst. Hinata merely raised a hand to her heart and quietly, rather solemnly said, "As long as Naruto-kun's happy, I am as well."

This reaction was only noted by Ino, who smiled fondly at the sweet and mature girl, before turning to the not-quite-as-mature girl.

The aforementioned girl, Sakura, was now in the process of trying to wear a hole on the ground which she paced on.

"There's no way... how could he... But it's Naruto-kun! I mean... Naruto! Couldn't he have picked a better guy if he was going to be gay? And Naruto-kun! How in the world could **he** gay? He's always talking about... Oh my god. I can't believe they're gay **together**."

And so it continued on, Sakura ranting to herself not so quietly while both Ino and Hinata watched her with caution.

Hinata now understood why Ino wanted them to stay. Particularly Sakura. It was obvious that Naruto and Sasuke's relationship had started not too long ago. After all, surely they would've known if it had gone on for some time. And as such they would not need a ranting girl to interrupt them.

Finally, Sakura sat down with a huff at her original position. For a few moments the three girls gathered their thoughts. Silence reigned at the clearing. The trees rustled their leaves; some turning yellow, others orange. A cool breeze blew through once again. Cries of children having fun played through the senses of the three girls.

And then, suddenly, it seemed that a thought hit all three girls at once.

For the pink-haired, dark-haired and light-haired one's eyes all met at some point. A glaze fell over their eyes. And thoughts seemed to run through their mind at lightening speed.

For moments, the three simply sat there thinking, thinking, thinking.

Then, at long last, one of them spoke.

"Guys... do you know what this means?"

Slow nods went through the tiny group.

A muffled shriek sounded out from one of them, suspected to be the dark haired one, though no one will believe it, before another spoke with passion.

"The two most sought after boys in our town has gotten together. One of them, the sexiest and prettiest we've seen since forever and the other who grew to be hot and handsome. Together. As in hot kinky sex and even hotter kisses. To-get-her."

One of them fanned herself at the thought. "Don't forget the contrast between the two of them."

"Oh yeah," the third yet to speak said, "The dark hair and that smooth pale skin next to that shock of silky blond hair and tanned dark skin. God, it's like dark meets light."

And simultaneously, "That. Is. So. Hot."

"And if you think about it, isn't it so cute too?"

"Uh-hmm, the two had been rivals and then friends for so long. And now that they've gotten together... It's like a romance novel."

"And the two of them always cared for each other **so** much. Taking care of each other, helping each other with their wounds." Hinata sighed, "it's amazing they hadn't gotten together sooner."

"That's true, " Sakura nodded, "Whenever I was with those two, all they seemed to care about was beating each other, but then they'll go and save the other, or help them so that they wouldn't get hurt. And then when one of them did get hurt, the other would yell at him and then take care of the wound."

"It's a miracle we didn't notice this sooner. I mean, I have an excuse, but the two of you are the presidents of their fan club!" Ino said this with an inquiring voice and a teasing tone.

Sakura pouted, "Well, you can't really expect us to look for things like these. I mean, we thought they were just rivals and then good friends. They never said anything to us."

Quietly, Hinata said, "Naruto-kun never seemed any different. It would've been hard to tell the difference."

"But now that I look back at it--" The two presidents looked at each other as they started their sentences.

"It seems so right," was Hinata's ending.

"It seems so obvious," was Sakura's ending.

A bit amused by the two's reactions, Ino snapped her fingers before replying, "It's great that you've accepted this so readily, but we still need to tell your vice presidents and the rest of the fan club. We can't leave the two of them without support. It's probably the reason why they've kept this from us."

The two girls nodded before Sakura spoke up, "We can go to my vice-president first. He should be at his house at this time and it's pretty close."

"Alright, let's go."

The three teenagers got up, eager to tell everybody the wonderful news. There were reasons as to why the two boys had fan clubs. Besides the fact that they were undeniably good looking in their own style, they all saw the way that those two seemed to be lonely. And while some people would be disappointed that they were now taken, everyone in the fan clubs would be glad that the two boys had finally found someone, even if it was each other. Or maybe, perhaps especially because it was the other.

-

"How's Kenichi-kun doing anyway?" Ino asked Sakura with a curious look on her face, "I haven't seen him in a while."

"Oh, he's training for the Jounin exams. It's his first time, and he wanted to leave for a little while to train alone. He's supposed to have been back yesterday."

"How did you choose him as a vice-president, Sakura-chan?"

"Well, I had to choose a guy, since there was a substantial amount of guys in Sasuke-kun's fanclub. And I chose Kenichi-kun because he was a nice guy, responsible and he genuinely liked Sasuke, at least, as far as I can tell. Why did you ask Hinata?"

Hinata took note of what Sakura said before answering, "Ah, well... I'm not too sure, but I don't think I or most of the fan club picked the right person to be our vice-president."

"Oh yeah, you have a lot of people in your club now, right? That's why you needed a new vice-president?" Sakura asked in curiosity.

"Yes, it was getting hard to manage everything, but..." Hinata hesitated, she was never a person to point out other's errors, however, this girl...

"Hmm, we'll meet her in a little while, we'll see then." Being presidents of the two fan clubs caused the two girls to become close and along with Ino, they formed a tight-knit group that could talk about anything and everything under the sky. As such, Sakura became worried about her friend and was determined to help the girl out if it was needed.

"Oh, we're here. I'll ask him to come out." Sakura ran up to the door of the house the group stopped in front of. It was a quaint house, two stories high and with a neat front lawn. She knocked on the door and waited impatiently for an answer.

The door finally opened to reveal a man in his early twenties. His shock of red hair was quite easily his most noticeable attribute, before moving down and seeing the striking features of the man. Narrow, almost almond-shaped eyes, the color of a thin cloud stretched over a dark blue sky and cheekbones prominent on the face, combined with an elegant nose and a full mouth created the face of a quite handsome man.

"Ah! Sakura-chan!" the red-haired man opened the door wider, revealing a bare sculpted chest void of a shirt, but definitely sporting a six-pack. "What are you doing here?"

"Kyou-kun! Ah..." Sakura was struck speechless at the naked chest in front of her.

Chuckling, the man now named Kyou, turned and shouted into the house, "Kenichi! Your president is here!"

From behind him, another young man, seeming to be around the age of 20, walked up to the door, ducked under the man's arm and rested his back against the man's chest. Smiling, Kyou wrapped his arms around Kenichi, seeming to be rather content to have him in his arms.

"Sakura-chan? What's up?" Kenichi asked the girl in front of him. He perked up an eyebrow when she continued to stare at the two, for Kenichi had also came out shirtless.

Exasperated by her lack of response, Ino walked up to the door and slapped Sakura up the head. "Concentrate here, Sakura!"

Shaking her head, she cleared her throat before finally speaking, "Kenichi-kun, I came here on club business, there is something we wish to inform you."

"Oh?" Now looking interested, he stood straight up, releasing Kyou's embrace, "Do you guys want to come in?"

Before Sakura could answer with an affirmative, Ino smoothly said, "If it's okay with you, we're running a bit out of time, so if you could just step outside for a moment we would greatly appreciate it."

Shrugging slightly, Kenichi planted a kiss on the man behind him and shoved him back into the house before closing the door.

"What?" He looked at the pair's bewildered face before dismissing it. "So, what's going on?"

The two girls took a while to get over the sight of Kenichi shoving his boyfriend into the house, but with a determined resolve, the two shoved the image out and concentrated on the matter at hand.

"We just wanted to inform you that we have strong reason to believe that Naruto and Sasuke are in a... intimate relationship. And we hope that you will continue to support the two."

"Sasuke? Dating Naruto? Huh... that's interesting. Wish I knew he was gay..."

Sakura and Ino merely stood there patiently... or not. "So yeah, we just wanted to tell you that."

"Hmm..." Kenichi continued to think before letting out a soft, "Ah..."

The two girls looked at him weirdly, "Uh... Kenichi-kun?"

"Oh, sorry, just thinking about how they would look like. It's pretty hot yet at the same time, kinda cute." Shaking his head, Kenichi smiled brightly and looked at the girls, "Is that all?"

"Yup. We just wanted to make sure that nobody decides to do something to Sasuke or Naruto with their new relationship. We wanted to have your support."

He nodded, understanding their mission, "So, can I tell Kyou?"

Ino answered this time, "You can tell anyone you want, as long as they would be supportive of them. We want to make sure the two don't have troubles at this fragile time."

Kenichi turned to open the door, "Don't worry about it. I'll help those two out. So I guess I'll see you at the next meeting, Sakura-chan?"

Curious at his apparent anxiousness to leave, she merely nodded and received a quick "Bye" and the closing of a door.

Wondering at his behavior, but also feeling the sun set, Ino pulled Sakura towards the waiting Hinata, "Come on, if we hurry, we can get to Hinata's vice-president, tell her and be home by dinner. I told my mom I'd be back soon. This isn't soon."

Distracted by Ino's hurrying, the three left, never knowing that Kenichi had went back into his house with the intention of ravishing his boyfriend. The image of the Sasuke and Naruto dating and doing other... stuff demanded a reaction and a reaction it received.

-

Racing against time, the three kunoichi rushed towards the house of Hinata's vice-president. Due to their rush, Sakura was unable to question Hinata and Hinata began to become more and more anxious as they neared their destination.

Leading the others, Hinata sprinted through a small forest before breaking off to reveal a large and humongous house. Seeming to cover almost miles of ground the house gave a looming and threatening shadow, one that caused the three girls to feel rather unsettled.

'If this is what her house is like, I'm afraid to think of what the girl is like.' This thought ran through Sakura's head, making her feel sympathetic towards Hinata. Her sympathies would turn into anger in moments.

Reaching to the door after what seemed like hours, Hinata raised the knocker and allowed it to fall heavily. The lion knocker banged against the bronze backdrop, creating a low hollow thud that echoed in what seemed to be a rather empty house. Within moments, the door was opened to present a butler that seemed to be in his mid-twenties.

Holding a haughty look on his face, he almost sneered at the sight of the three before asking, "Yes, ladies, may I help you?"

Trying to gather up her courage, Hinata started to speak before faltering. Seeing this, Sakura said loudly, yet politely that she would like to see the mistress of the house. And if she asked, that the president to her vice-presidency would like to meet her.

Giving her a simple "Hmm" that spoke volumes of scorn, he told them to wait before closing the door on their faces.

Suppressing that indignant gasp that wanted so much to come out, Sakura glared at the door before turning to Hinata.

"Remember what the two of us taught you Hinata. Do. Not. Back. Down." Ino nodded along with Sakura's statement, while Hinata gave a timid affirmative.

Before more pep talk could be administered, the door opened once again to reveal a girl in her teens. While one could not call this girl beautiful, nor pretty, one could not also not call her ugly. She was just rather... plain.

But she was definitely not ordinary for when she opened her mouth to speak, there was almost immediately a feeling of hatred rising through the two girls who had yet to meet her. "Hum, what are _you_ doing here?"

The stress pushed onto 'you' indicated that she thought them beneath her and had no wish to conceal it. The light haired kunoichi refrained from reaching for their waiting kunai, just barely.

Seeing this, Hinata immediately spoke up, "We simply wished to inform you that Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun are going out and we wish for you to show your support."

There was a moment of silence before a screech was emitted. Almost thinking that it was an animal who created such a sound Sakura and Ino's reached for their pouches before realizing that the sound had come from the girl in from to them. Silently laughing, the two girls decided to walk a distance before quietly vocalizing their reaction.

Releasing their laughs, the two returned to the sight of the nasty little girl practically yelling at Hinata. And while Hinata did not stand up for herself, she did not cower as she would have done years before. She only stood firm, letting the girl's words wash over her.

Walking close enough to hear the girl's rant, they found that it was a much harsher version of Sakura's initial reaction.

"...that Naruto would go out with that pretty boy! Naruto belongs to me! Even if he didn't, it's disgusting to think that he is gay. There is absolutely no way! I refuse to be the vice-president of a club dedicated to that piece of--"

The girl was cut off as both Sakura and Ino lunged at her. Sakura sat on her stomach as Ino held her hands.

Sakura spoke softly with a hint of threat, "Excuse me little miss, but what were you about to call Naruto-kun?"

Being the stereotypical rich, dumb, and spoiled girl that others have tried to stop portraying, she was unable to hear the threat in Sakura's voice and thus continued, "I was about to call Naruto a disgusting piece of filth who doesn't deserve my--"

CRACK

Sakura and Ino looked up, shocked at the sound of the slap. Hinata stood above them, breathing hard in anger.

"I don't care how you have acted in the past, but to insult Naruto-kun when he is the greatest boy out there..." She trailed of, seeming to be too furious to speak.

Ino continued where she had stopped, "Naruto-kun is the kindest boy you'll ever meet and for you to call him filth shows only that you are filth. I would've understood if you didn't accept their relationship, but to degrade Naruto-kun like that is complete bull."

"If we ever see you, or hear you speak of Naruto like this again, we **will** come after you. And the same goes for Sasuke. You have absolutely no right to say what you have said. Regardless of who he dates, Naruto-kun is Naruto-kun," Sakura started to calm, "And if you truly liked him, you would've seen that."

The girls backed off of the one on the floor. Although she maintained a look of contempt and superiority, the three kunoichi saw the gaze of fear in her eyes.

Restraining their urges to slap the girl more, the three left the house quickly, hoping to blow off some steam.

"The nerve of that girl..." Sakura started.

"Completely ridiculous." Ino added.

"I can't believe I didn't see this." Hinata said softly.

"Don't worry about it Hinata, you were worried about her in the beginning, you were just proved right. She's not worth the effort." Ino reassured her, knowing that Hinata would take the words of the girl too seriously and blame herself for picking such a vice-president.

"Listen to her Hinata," Sakura started, "It's not your problem and it's not your fault. Right now, we just have to worry about Sasuke and Naruto."

Hinata nodded and thanked the two, "Thanks you guys, I appreciate it. I just hope things don't go too bad with Naruto and Sasuke."

Sakura grinned before replying, "I don't think we have to worry about the two of them. They have strong wills. They'll survive anything that they get."

The other two agreed before saying their good-byes.

"My house is over there, I'll see you guys tomorrow."

"Alright, bye!"

And then one by one they left, leaving Ino alone. She reached the town and slowed down. Peering into the shops, she greeted the people she knew and one by one, more and more people knew.

From mouth the mouth, ear to ear, news of Sasuke and Naruto's new relationship spread. It spread all throughout the village until, the next day, everybody knew. And soon, the two involved would also hear of the rumors. They would hear and they would protest and nobody will listen. Not until the final stage of their revenge that is. When it'll finally be stuck in their heads that Naruto and Sasuke are **not** dating. But until then, oh yeah, they're dating.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1)** When I say girl, I refer to teenage years and perhaps _slightly_ older and _slightly_ younger. And when I say interest, I mean, don't really care who they end up with, past the whole 'I am their friend and they deserve good people' thing. Ino still sees them as any other girl would though, urgh, it's hard to explain, I described it slightly in the prequel. Let's just say she doesn't hold enough of an interest to be in either fanclub... anymore.

La/-/er- Damn, that thing took me three hours to type. And now my shoulder huuuuurts! So this chapter might've been a bit boring to some of you. Don't worry though, Sasuke and Naruto come up in the next chapter. It's all them the next chapter, actually. So even if you thought this chapter wasn't good, check out the next one. nod nod It'll be a bit shorter though. And the little bit at the end of this will probably the last angsty bit of this fic. Should be, we'll see. But remember, **humor fic**.

Alright, that's it, my shortest notes ever cuz my shoulders hurt. Go review now, tell me what you thought. The next one should come in 4 or 5 days or next Friday. That's gonna be my schedule for this fic.

One burning question before I go, I'm planning to write a one-shot in my free time, but I need some information. If anybody knows what Sasuke's favorite foods are please tell me. And his least favorite and the same thing for Naruto. If you know a site with this information, I would greatly appreciate it.

**Okay, go review now. I'll love ya if you do.  
**

Written: 9/03/04 Around 2 o'clock to 5 o'clock

Edited: 4/27/2005


	2. A Nudge In the Wrong Direction

**Disclaimer:** Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er-** Really, this would've been written earlier, but stuff seemed to not want me to write this. I would tell you everything that's been happening, but it's long, it's boring, it's tedious, and I might as well use my time to type the chapter. So the shortest beginning notes ever now ends.

**Warnings: Slight language. Mentions of sex...**

**Review Responses:** I actually need to write it all out there's so many! Double digits! -wild cheering- And because I have no life, the reviews are in reverse alphabetical order. Reverse cuz my last name starts with a Z.

**Thanks To:**

**_YaoiLoverS-_** You're going to find out Sasuke and Naruto's reaction in this chapter. (Well, you were **supposed** to.) Silly girl, there's a reason why this is a sequel. If you want to know what **really **happened, all you have to do is read the prequel _Misconceptions. _You get some hints in this chapter, but it's better if you read the prequel before you read this chapter. You might not understand.

**_Seito- _**Whoo, long review. Lovely in ways that other people would be unable to write it. Might be because of all the OCs. beaming grin Thanks for the review, since I know you don't usually review. Love ya!

**_SasuNaruLover-_** -bows- Thank You.

**_RukaIayLomperGay-_** So glad you like this story, 's my baby child now. Something new because of the girls, really? Hur... Yes, I think it's a good continuation too. Lol, thanx for the hilarious comment. Well... Sasuke and Naruto don't get their revenge yet. The "And then some"... will come shortly after the revenge begins. Unfortunately, I seem to like to drag things out, so you'll have to wait until the chapter after the next for their revenge to begin. Aw... I don't think I'm awesome, but it's cool that you think that! huggles

**_PrvertedGoofness-_** Ha! I haven't heard that compliment yet, "funny and real". clap clap Thankies! And yes, here's the next chapter.

**_Nanashi2- _**Yup, hehe, definitely more. To tell the truth, I don't know what all you people mean by my writing style, since I am the one writing. But I'll take your words to heart and just say thanks for the compliments. Whee! Thanks for the answers, helps me greatly. Now if I could only find the answer to the second part... Haha, nice way to avoid it.

**_Luna-_** Continuing!

**_Kyuubi-kun-_** Aah! Aaah! Aaaah! -Fangirls- But yes, thanks for the review, and I will continue!

**_izumi-_** Ooh, you traveled (from _Without Life_ to here). Fanclubs prolly aren't like this, but there definitely are presidents and stuff. Er, as to the people... Yup, funny is what I'm going for, so it's all good. -huggles you for the kiss- Alright, I'll admit it, what do you mean such a fanclub? I like your reviews, they always confuse me...

**_Hieisbestbuddy888-_** Yes, I like rumors. The bed thing was all spontaneous, I just had the beginning part thought out. I'm glad that it turned out good. grin Yes, poor Kiba, hehe. And here's your update!

**_Frontier of Darkness- _**Thank you for you answers bows And yes, it's obvious that Naruto's favorite food is ramen, but I remembered that Kishimoto-sensei gave all of them two favorite foods.

**_eleonor-dale07- _**Keeping it up, here's more, thankies for liking it.

**_Dark Mimiru-chan- _**Lol, your review made me laugh. And is 5 days soon enough?

**For Reviewing _Delicious Revenge Chapter 1_!**

**Thanks To:**

**_Spooy-_** Darn, I've been proved wrong. But thanks for telling me, and so nicely too! But I still hold one thing, Naruto's bed is right under/next to the window. You can't take that away from me! Thankies for all your compliments, all of you making me blush and smile like a maniac... And I still don't know what writing style you guys are talking about...

**_izumi-_** Ah! You reviewed this too! You deserve a kiss now! -smooch- Lol, yes, I am a pervert!

**For Reviewing _Misconceptions_!**

**

* * *

**

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter II --- The La/-/er

_**A Nudge in the Wrong Direction**_

It was a pleasant day in Konoha. As the people mingled in the streets, birds chirped and leaves rustled. A slightly cool breeze blew through the nooks and crannies of the village, banishing most of the oppressive heat that threatened to settle upon the town. Varying voices cried out through the streets, creating a nice blending of sounds... Whoa, whoa, there's something wrong, it's like déjà-vu.

(Ah, it's obvious what this is, it is the other beginning of the story. The one that did not speak of Ino and Sakura and Hinata and had just about no mention of fan clubs. No, wait there are mentions. But this chapter is to be about the events that occurred right after Sasuke had re-entered Naruto's apartment. Events that eventually led to other events to which they would not like. Situations that they would decidedly not appreciate after it's all said and done. Events that occurred that made their life just _that_ **much** _worse. _And so, we begin their part of the story.)

With the help he had managed to extract from Sasuke, while bantering all throughout the process, Naruto had finally finished setting up his new bed. Not bothering to restrain himself, he pounced on it, relishing in the contradicting softness and hardness of the mattress. Noticing a distinct lack of noises as he fell upon his bed, he himself let out a pleased moan.

Sasuke watched Naruto during this whole process before commenting, "You know, I just noticed this, but thinking back, do you realize that it sounded very much like we were having sex?"

Naruto let out a frustrated groan at having his precious first time with his bed interrupted with the talk of sex... again. "What the hell's with you and sex today? Take your mind out of the gutter already!"

Sasuke gave a little sniff before raising an eyebrow, "You're awfully twitchy about the subject of sex, aren't you? I was merely pointing out that if someone was to pass by your apartment, they might've fallen under the assumption that we were having sex. And anyway... stop blushing Naruto, it's not like you've never encountered sex before."

The aforementioned boy merely reddened further before saying, "Unlike some people in this room, sex isn't exactly a common topic around me." Naruto scrunched up his face before continuing, "I'm not the one being followed by girls and guys alike who are offering to _'warm your bed for just one night'._" Naruto's voice dropped low at his last words, imitating the tone that he had heard emitted from one of the guys who had offered. Guys, because he would never do such a thing as speak in a high-pitched voice, or rather is unable to. Well, actually...

"All I hear around you is, _'Sasuke-kuuuun! Look at me, look at me! Aren't I sexy enough to be with you?'_" Naruto broke off with an irritated look on his face, "Honestly, with all the girls squealing around you, you'd think you were some kind of sex god or something."

"Jealous, Naruto?" Sasuke asked with a mischievous grin, one that said that there were so many ways he could go with that statement.

"Jealous! **Jealous!** Why in the world will I be jealous of you. Just because you've got good looks and a great body and because you've got that voice..." At this point Naruto trailed off, fully realizing the words that had come out of his mouth. 'Oh Kami-sama, I did _not _just say that out loud.'

With a glance towards Sasuke, it was apparent that he had. For he held a peculiar expression. One with a mixture of shock, smugness, amusement, and... yes, maybe just a hint of happiness.

Of course, in typical Naruto attitude, all he saw was the smugness that was quite apparent on the pale face.

And continuing the typical Naruto attitude, he did what he would normally do in this situation, which was to laugh, brush the whole thing off like it was nothing and then run. Running as far as he could from the scene of the crime. So he did exactly that. Not without uttering a few bit of words though.

Naruto shot up off the bed and walked to the door. "Um, yeah, I uh... I should go to buy some uh... new sheets! That's right! I need new sheets, so yeah, bye!" Naruto said this all in a rush, and finally reached out and opened the door. Sprinting through it and then slamming the door with more force than necessary, he missed the curious look Sasuke held on his features.

Closing his mind to any further thoughts, Sasuke merely shrugged and went to follow Naruto. After all, a statement like that just screamed for a confrontation. With a smirk, he prepared to find Naruto and question and tease him as if the world depended on it.

-

Unfortunately, while Sasuke was able to find Naruto, by the time he did, Naruto had fully recovered from the embarrassment uttering those words had caused him. Seeming to have forgotten the incident, he proceeded to wheedle Sasuke into buying the things he held in his arms when he saw him. Turning on full blast the puppy eyes that he had mastered when Iruka almost refused to buy him ramen, he sculpted his words to turn things into his favor.

"Ne, Sasuke. I was wondering..." Naruto trailed off, wondering if he should really be asking Sasuke to pay for his new bed stuff. It wasn't as if they were really **that** close and there was really no reason for Sasuke to pay for his things. The bastard may be rich, but he was a miser. **(1)** As one could tell by the outfits he wore every day.

For example, that day Sasuke had wore a plain black shirt that seemed two sizes too small. It was attached to his skin, seemingly not choking him only because of the low, low collar the shirt had. And what was really peculiar about the shirt was that it seemed... slanted a bit, falling off of Sasuke's right shoulder while the left shoulder seemed quite normal.

Passing his eyes over his rival/friend's outfit, he offhandedly, though his gaze seemed to linger a bit, noticed the slight six pack Sasuke had. One that wasn't fully defined, but enough to tell that he was in good shape. As he should be, since he was a ninja and all.

Moving his eyes further down, he noticed that the white shorts Sasuke wore seemed awfully similar to the ones that the boy had worn 4 years ago. If it wasn't because the shorts were still a bit baggy on the other boy, Naruto would've firmly believed that those were the same pair of shorts the boy wore oh-so-long ago.

On the other hand, Naruto kept his orange pants simply due to lack of funds to buy new ones. It was interesting that they still fit him even to this day, considering that in the past, it barely fell past his ankles. One had to wonder whether Naruto had managed to grow at all, but looking at the rest of his body... was evidence enough.

The orange jacket was hidden in his closet since too many kunai slashes had caused it to become close to impossible to repair. Instead, he wore a deep blue shirt that would've looked mismatched on any other person with any other orange. But on him, it all blended quite nicely. Capping the whole outfit off with his trademark blond hair, he made quite a handsome sight.

Sasuke just looked plain sexy.

Not that Naruto thought that he was. It was just the general consensus of the town...

Reaching a conclusion on his 'Should I ask Sasuke to pay' dilemma, he had somehow convinced himself that Sasuke, while he was his rival, was an overall decent person and with the right persuasion, he would be able to get the rich boy to pay for his things. He did, after all, need to save his money for ramen to eat. Eating ramen for all three meals and for the multiple snacks all throughout the day took a lot of money. But Naruto was quite content with his use.

Nodding at his silent conclusion, he failed to notice that Sasuke was watching him.

He was watching him and seeing that specific eye squinting and hand movement that indicated he was thinking about money. A twitch of the hand and he was thinking about ramen **and** money.

Without Naruto even needing to speak, Sasuke already knew what Naruto wanted to ask. He knew and already decided he would pay, he was a rich bastard after all **(2)**, but wanted to see what Naruto would choose to do in order to... persuade Sasuke to pay.

"Idiot, what did you want to ask?"

Startled out of his thinking, even though technically he was done, Naruto started to glare at Sasuke before remembering that he had a mission to carry out. One that needed a lot of good feelings and as little glaring at Sasuke as possible.

"Ah, Sasuke, I was wondering..." And yet again he trailed of, leaving Sasuke a bit frustrated, but mostly amused.

While Naruto continued to ponder the right way that he should approach the persuasion, the two boys failed to notice that other people were noticing them.

Besides the to-be-expected teen observers, there were a few adults that seemed to linger around the shop that the two stood in. (Oh yes, the shop? What is it, you ask? It is... the 'Fabric and Related Items' shop. Obviously a shop that sold fabric and related items. As Naruto had said in a rush before, with his new bed, he needed new sheets, and what's a better place to get them than at the 'Fabric and Related Items' store? Since sheets are made out of fabric and... stuff, yeah.)

So seeing as how it was the 'Fabric and Related Items' shop, surrounding it were various other stores. The types that people go to just about every week. And it just so happened that the grocery shopping street was the street adjacent to this one. So indeed, this was a hustling, bustling street.

And since it was in the late afternoon, some people were going home; incidentally, this was a major street of which many people passed by on their paths. And some of those people that were going home had been just let out of school, whichever one it is they go to. Oh, would you look at that, the school adjacent to the other side of the street had just let out.

All in all, it led to a lot of onlookers in their vicinity. And when it is said that there was a lot... there was a **lot**.

Of course, the great ninjas that Sasuke and Naruto are... they didn't notice anything at all.

Granted, there usually are around this number of villagers in this time of day in this area. But they usually don't linger around the shops like they are doing right now.

(An example, you say? Well, let's look over to a shop two stores over. See that 18 year-old? Yes, the one carrying a couple of books in their arms. That's right, the **male** 18 year-old holding books in their hands. And yes, the **male **18 year-old holding books in their hands and along with a blue lacy 34B bra.)

As decent ninjas, the two 16 year-olds should've been able to see that and wonder. They _were_ **facing **that way. But apparently, they were too enthralled with each other to notice anything.

As such, when Naruto finally began to speak, the villagers heard every single word. Well... most of them anyway. The words or the villagers? Ah... you'll find out.

So the speckles of villagers watched them curiously. They wondered at the scene they saw, heard and just about smelled... hmm, someone was wearing a lavender perfume, or is it a cologne?

They saw and thus they became slightly confused as evidently, Sasuke finally relented and agreed to pay for the purchases. Never knowing, of course, that he had already decided long ago. But along with his agreement, he laid out several conditions. Well, two, but several sounds so much better, doesn't it?

Unfortunately, although we can debate on how unfortunate this may be, the villagers were unable to hear the conditions for Sasuke bent down, just a tiny bit, and whispered into his companion's ears the conditions.

Not managing to hear those conditions, the onlookers became more confused and more curious as the words spoken into Naruto's ears caused him to blush.

"Alright, alright, I'll do it! Geez, I should've never asked you to pay for these sheets."

Oh? Sheets? The thoughts of the villagers became... different as those words were uttered. And combined with the blushing...

Sasuke gave a pleased smile before reverting back to a smirk. "Now, don't forget Naruto, you agreed to do this."

"Humph." Naruto merely dumped his purchases onto the counter of the shop, fully unaware of the looks the two were gaining.

There was a clear reception of their words; the villagers could hear all that was uttered, except for the conditions of course, and as decent villagers... they began to gossip with whoever was closest to them at the time.

Poor Naruto and Sasuke, it was the wrong day to do this, as they found out later on.

But it wasn't later on and they wouldn't find out for some time, so for now, they remained in blissful ignorance, continuing their verbal assaults with smiles on their faces. To those still observing, they almost looked like a old married couple...

Which caused a bit more gossip to hitch onto the ride that was going to every ear, through every mouth.

Of course, the one thing that wasn't hitching a ride, were the conditions that were asked. Although, looking back, perhaps it was best they weren't heard...

(The conditions? What about them? Oh, you want to know what they are, do you? Well, maybe we shouldn't tell you. It would be a wonderful surprise to look for after all. Not that they were that wonderful. Oh no, they were simple conditions. True, one condition involved touching, but... get your minds out the gutter! Naughty people.

Well, one condition that was made was very simple. Just Sasuke wanting a full explanation of what Naruto had said back in the apartment. Yup, that's all. Not meaning that all Sasuke was going to do was **ask**, but that was the gist of it. Yup. That's it.

No... the repetitions are **not** because we're excited and am hiding something from you. Don't be paranoid. Anyways, back to the story.)

Finally having paid for their purchases, the two teenagers left the area, heading back to their original location.

Never noticing that when they moved, heads suddenly started to turn every which way. Anywhere except for where the two boys were. Of course, as soon as their backs were turned, swoop, swoop, there was a return of the gazes.

The street in front of them hustled and bustled like a normal street at this time. But behind them, there was a bit of a hush, the villagers watching every step they took and gobbling up all the words that reached their ears.

Moments later... Ino came upon the street on her way home.

-

When they reached the apartment, Naruto proceeded to smother his bed with the sheets he had recently brought and the cover that he had stashed away in his closet. Poking at Sasuke, he managed to wordlessly extract his help in cleaning the apartment. Receiving only a smile and a blink as he turned to look at the blond, Sasuke rolled his eyes and began picking up the items on the floor.

"Really, you would think that I was your mother or something."

Not receiving a verbal response, merely a beaming grin and a slight punch on the arm, he smiled slightly and spent the rest of the night helping Naruto.

By the time the house was clean, the bed normalized - meaning the sheets were on **neatly** and the covers placed on top - night had fallen.

Yup, they took _that _long to clean up the apartment. Most likely because they had a pillow fight in the middle of their cleaning up, which led to extra cleaning up.

To which Sasuke just about pouted at, but of course Uchiha Sasuke does not pout. No, he merely scowled at the feathers and cotton flying all over the apartment. That lower lip that you see sticking out is not sticking out. Oh no, it's just that his lower lip feels like hanging out a little farther than usual, making it **seem** like he was pouting when he wasn't. Really.

So night had fallen, and the two were immensely tired. Seeing as the bed was new and bigger than his old one, Naruto barely hesitated before offering Sasuke to spend the night in the apartment.

His reasoning was of course, **not** the reason why he was staying. Nobody would stay after what Naruto said to Sasuke. What did he say? He said:

"Thanks for helping me clean up and all that. But you seem tired. Poor thing, did cleaning up the apartment take too much out of you? You should stay here, just in case. We wouldn't want you collapsing from exhaustion on your way home."

It was as if Naruto was asking for a death wish. It was rather strange though, now that one looks back at it. Naruto is not one to say those kinds of things. It sounds more like it would come from a fan girl... er no, it seems like something that would come out of a person who was vastly sarcastic and angry at Sasuke. So why would Naruto say such a thing?

Why?

Unfortunately we shall never find out as the reason is deep within Naruto's mind and it's slightly dangerous to venture in too deeply. **(3)**

Nevertheless, never one to let words bring him down, he agreed to stay, much to the surprise of the other boy.

It seemed that Naruto had temporarily forgotten the words he had said mere moments before. One might wonder what was going on with the blond boy. He's acting peculiar, isn't he?

Trying not to show his reaction too much, Naruto merely grinned and prepared for bed. It was after 11, after all and good ninjas need to have a good amount of sleep if they were to fight wonderfully. And they were going to fight tomorrow. It's just that it would be a slightly different kind of fight. It was a good thing they had a good night sleep that night. Because for the next few weeks...

So Sasuke also prepared for bed, stripping off his shirt with little difficulty. Naruto, lying on the bed, pondered a bit about that. It was such a tight shirt, how was it that he take could it off so easily. His thoughts trailed off after a while, though.

Trailed off because a half-naked Sasuke was in front of him and he was totally not attracted to the sight.

Hell. No.

Not attracted because he saw the same kind of body every day in the mirror. Sure, his skin was slightly darker, his muscles just a bit bulkier where Sasuke sported slim, flexible muscles. His shoulders a bit broader, his chest as well, his waist not quite as small as the boy's in front of him. The neck a slim, pale, column that had trails of light blue veins just barely peeking out. The chin that was slightly pointier than his own. The mouth that was fuller yet thinner at the same time...

He wasn't a bishounen quite like Sasuke, but it was basically the same figure.

Basically.

Groaning at the path his thoughts were taking, he stuffed his face into one of the remaining pillow that laid on his bed. He felt the shift of the bed and the sliding of a warm body next to him.

The lights were closed, the moonlight streamed in, and Naruto continued to breath shallow breaths through his pillow.

After a few moments...

"Naruto! Naruto! Dobe, what do you think you're doing!"

Unknowingly, Naruto had started to drift off with his face still stuffed in the pillow, causing less and less air to reach to his lungs. He had started thrashing, interrupting the relaxation process Sasuke was going through in order to be able to sleep next to the other boy.

He turned the other boy onto his back and Naruto gazed at him a little dazedly before giving Sasuke a soft smile and promptly falling back asleep.

Rolling his eyes at the boy, Sasuke laid back down and fell asleep to the steady breathing of the other boy.

Yet another good place to stop isn't it? After all, the last chapter stopped earlier than this. Skipping over Ino's visit through the town in which she told everybody that Naruto and Sasuke were going out. And were definitely deeply in love. And that the only reason why no one knew was because the two were afraid of the rejection that would come from two males falling in love. That would come from those two falling in love.

It was only right that she told the whole town. That way, everyone could show their support for the two boys' relationship. And for those who didn't like it, they didn't matter, a lot of people were fine with it. After some... talking to by Ino.

Just because they weren't **really** going out doesn't mean that they didn't love each other. After what Ino had told them, everything fell into place. All the confrontations, the fights, the saving, it all made sense now. It was a wonderful explanation. And interestingly, quite easy to accept.

Of course, the boys' reaction to this would definitely be quite volatile. But that can wait for the next chapter, can't it?

But then again, their reaction is rather quite amusing. In that **no one**_believed_ them.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1) **I can't help but think that since all the Uchiha died, all their belongings, including money, would've been given to Sasuke to do what he will, with some exceptions anyway. But looking to what I can see of Sasuke's character, he would hate to use or sell or whatever the things he were given. So technically, he would be rich, but just not wanting to use what he inherited, so to speak.

**(2)** I said he didn't want to use it, but times have changed and Naruto's his friend (and maybe something more...) and the way he could see it (again, from what I see of his character) is that using the money for someone else, wouldn't be too terrible. And he's not going to always do this... Besides, I bet that he's got a lot of money saved up anyway. Since all the villagers like him, he probably didn't need to cook the first few years after the Uchiha massacre. So there goes the food expenses... And he wore the same clothes every day... So the money he uses, could be his own personal money, -shrug- you pick.

**(3)** To tell the truth, I've no idea where the hell I was going with this. No idea at all. Don't know why I even wrote it. It just came out. Like it slid out of my fingers. And this was my way of getting out of it... Please don't hurt me, I don't think it's dangerous to venture into Naruto's mind... much. You never know, I might get drowned by thoughts of ramen... Possibly, I might have a visit later on, but until then, let it lie peacefully, unless of course you have any ideas? For now, let's just say the jealousy from... oh... idea... hmm...

**La/-/er- **Pooie, I was supposed to write their reactions too. But it was such a good place to end it! But don't worry, the next chapter comes up verily much faster than this one did. In fact, I'm not posting this until I finish writing the next chapter. (I lied...) As such, remember to review! The better reviews I get, the faster the next chapter comes!

And since the next chapter was supposed to be a part of this, this one was shorter. And most likely so will the next one... Anyway, since school is starting on Monday (nooooo) and the next chapter was supposed to be a part of this one, another chapter will come out on Sunday. Hopefully. Next chapter, if this one gets reviews, will come up tomorrow. Hopefully. I might get greedy and post this up on Friday. For more reviews. Maybe I should do that... Yes, the next chapter will come on Friday. And then Sunday. -nod nod- That's good. I expect you all to review every single one of 'em -shakes finger at you-

**So review and tell me what you thought!**

Written: 9/8/04 (Around 2-ish to 5-ish. Finished on 5:10:14 PM)

Edited: 4/27/05


	3. The Action and Reaction

**Disclaimer:** Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er-** For once, I really am starting this when I said I would. Right after I finished the last chapter. As such, I've got nothing to say and review responses to write... yet!

**Warning: **There is an OC in this chapter. Except, she's not mine. Nope, she's the bastardized version of Seito's OC in her story _Kagau Waku wa Hana no Shita ni te._ The one named Seika. Why is she in here? Cuz she pissed me off. Seika, not Seito. Ya see, in our AIM conversations together, Seito tends to switch between herself speaking and her OCs/muses. So in my mind, Seika rather exists. Yes, you can ignore my insaneness now. Just wanted to warn you and disclaim Seika, even if she is bastardized in here. And if you haven't checked out Seito's story yet, I suggest you go and do it now. It's rather good. Funny. Or if you like Fullmetal Alchemist, forget the Naruto story, read her FMA/HP crossover named _Yoake Mae: Fate and Destiny_. It's brilliant, I tell you! Brilliant! It's like a brand new genius kind of work! Ahem, I'm done.

**Review Responses:** Since I still don't have a life, this time in alphabetical order!

**:)-** You're not really in the beginning or in the end, so I'll just stick you in the beginning cuz you deserve it. Yes, yes, I know, I know, them finding out and then doing their revenge is the best part. But please! Building up suspense and all that. That and I like to drag things out, lol. You find their initial reaction here. Half of it... And I don't like your preferences... because it just ruined everything for me... It was what I was planning on doing. Pooie. Ah, it's in the summary, I'm still sticking to it. But good thinking, it's perfect. The last part of your review, is being taken into consideration... :cackle:.

**_Aimi-chan-_** :sniffle: So many people likey ma storie. 's nice ppl too. Yes, I find the referring to future events very fun to do. They're like sneak previews, except more foreboding. :blink blink: I... well, if you wanna haunt me for eternity, I've got nothing against it, lol. And it's soon, it's the same day you reviewed. And I definitely will put more SasuNaru fluff. In the 5th chapter. :cackle: (Ah! You like KilluaxGon! Hug me:giggle:)

**_AnimeFreakPerson-_** That's all I'm really aiming for. I'll do the best I can to keep it up. And here's your update (hiding it in between coughs, tut tut, be brave! Shout it out! Lol) Thankies.

**_Aurum-_** Creativity is not needed for reviews, honesty is. As long as you keep on with honest comments, I'll love you forever. Lol, in the platonic way of course. I suspect many people liked the 2nd chapter more than the 1st. But I shall try to write as good, if not better than I have been. Managed to live? That doesn't sound very steady. School shouldn't do to much to me, but 's my "most important year" so teachers might get vicious. But I can always write on my way to school, so updates shouldn't slack off. It won't be like how it's been, but it won't decrease too much. Thanks for the compliments and comments. And thanks for reading my ramblings at the end, and commenting. :huggle:

**_Cookie6-_** Thanks. And don't worry, I'm not stopping until I've finished, even if it means I need to actually... :shudder: work at it. Hehe, they are cute, aren't they?

**_Dark Mimiru-Chan-_** Dear gawd... your review made me laugh hysterically for a long, long time. And I finally remember why I know you. You write great humor fics too:huggles: (every time I look back at your review, I laugh a little more)

**evvy-**You like the way this is going, eh? Thanks! And your review sounds like something out of the New York Times. 's not bad, sounds professional-like. Thank you for the compliments. I'll keep it up, don't worry 'bout me.

**_ghostninja85-_** :beaming grin: "Well written as always", that's a good compliment! Thankies! And I'm afraid my humor is starting to diminish as my perverted-ness rises. What do you mean "actually laugh"? I'm caught between being complimented and... I'll just stick with that. I do believe that's what you mean. You get half their reactions in this chapter. Lol, subliminal messaging. I don't think I really need it, but it helps. Keep it going! Anyway, thanks for reviewing everything:huggles hard: And I do believe updating hours after you review is soon.

**izumi- **It was such a great name, wasn't it? And life would definitely be easier. But also a bit boring. After all, a name like Target(tm) is quite unique and sticks in your mind doesn't it? If you babble what you feel after the chapter, I cannot ignore your feelings! Lol, but thanks for reviewing.

**mystik-**Glad you like the story. (tips imaginary hat) Half of their reaction is presented in this chapter. And updating in less than two days is rather good, doncha think?

**_Nanashi2-_** To tell the truth, your review was the thing that pushed me over the edge to start writing the damn thing. So pat yourself on the back for that. I try to update fast, cuz this one isn't supposed to be too long and I had a horrible updating schedule for my other multi-chap. I went a month without updating. No one seemed to care, but I did so... yeah. Hehe, glad you think it's cute, I can't seem to help myself when I write scenes with those two together. And Naruto smothering himself seemed like something he would do, accidentally of course. Glad you thought it was funny. What you wrote at the end there was love daisuke... Daisuki means I like (you) very much. And the reason why I know this so well is because of DNAngel, hehe. And you skitter a lot...

**_NightOwl123-_** :bows: Thankies for your comments and here's the next chapter!

**_RukaIayLomperGay-_** Hur? Confusing? Nani? Honestly K-chan, you need to get your mind out of the gutter! Think big picture! But yeah, you get everything but that for the next few chapters. And this one, although it's slightly milder here. (Mojojo? Power Puff girls? I shall commence to look at you weirdly)

**_Seito-_** You know, technically you didn't tell me what you thought about this chapter. But I'll take all the things your OCs said as a compliment. And yes, I'm continuing. Hurm... should I send you this chapter? ...nah. I didn't know when I first wrote this, but Seika's in here... as I said up there.

**_YaoiLoverS-_** Haha, I can tell what you thought was good about the first story. You read the title? I usually read the summary and I never find what the title is until I'm done reading. And the author. Cuz then I need to save the stories into my computer, lol. Don't worry, there are hidden perverts in all of us waiting to come out. I've a feeling there's more of that pervert in you. Yup, reactions in this chapter, and I should think that two days is a good update time.

**:running tears: Thank you everyone. Never knew this would be quite so popular. Honestly, if I knew, I would've forced myself to start writing this sooner!**

**

* * *

**

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter III --- The La/-/er

_**The Action and Reaction**_

It was a pleasant day in Konoha. As the people mingled in the streets, birds chirped and leaves rustled. A slightly cool breeze blew through the nooks and crannies of the village, banishing most of the oppressive heat that threatened to settle upon the town. Varying voices cried out through the streets, creating a nice blending of sounds along with the other sensations felt that day.

Shops opened up cheerfully, students went to their respective schools, parents went off to their jobs and those not belonging in the aforementioned categories did their own little peaceful things. But through it all, rumors flew from mouth to mouth, ear to ear, person to person, building to building. The rumor that was to set the style of the events of the village for the next few months.

(Ah, indeed, it is déjà-vu yet again. The only difference is...)

In an apartment somewhere in the village, Sasuke woke up slowly in the bed, wanting to relish in the feeling of a new mattress. Momentarily forgetting that there was another person in the bed, since it wasn't **his** new mattress, he did a little stretch and made a little noise.

A little noise that seemed to have an identity crisis as it seemed to be a cross between a whimper, a sigh, a moan, and something quite unidentifiable. But quite erotic.

Erotic indeed to the person next to him.

The male person next to him whose bed they both laid on.

The one who was now desperately trying to finish the job he subconsciously tried to do last night.

To suffocate himself so that these thoughts would **get** _out_**of** **his** mind!

When Naruto shuffled around to thrust his head into his pillow, Sasuke abruptly stopped stretching. Finally remembering that the bed he laid on was not his, he slowly got out and then continued to stretch.

Not noticing, or at least, seemingly not noticing Naruto's gaze upon him, he did his daily morning stretches. As he went through each one, somehow, it seemed to get more and more provocative. Each new stretch showing another fresh expanse of skin.

Another chance to glimpse the pale skin that stretched tautly over those smooth, slim muscles...

In an attempt to get Sasuke to **stop stretching**, Naruto turned over and pretended to start waking up. Having turned away to do so, he never saw the smirk that played on Sasuke's lips.

Giving a large, and quite an exaggerated yawn, Naruto sat up and rubbed the back of his hands across his eyes.

"Ne... what time is it?" Soon sinking into a real wake-up drowsiness, Naruto looked up at Sasuke blearily.

"It's 8 o'clock. I'm going to make breakfast, do you want any?" Sasuke's stomach grumbled a bit, as if needing to prove that he was making breakfast because he was hungry. And definitely not because he had already heard an initial grumble from Naruto.

Naruto brightened up slightly at the thought of food. He nodded eagerly, causing him to stop moments later when he started to get dizzy.

Chuckling slightly at his actions, Sasuke moved to the kitchen. There was a moment of silence before the sound of rummaging was heard.

"Naruto. You have... very little food in your refrigerator." There was an amused tone in Sasuke's voice, one that said that he may be amused... but he wasn't really.

The two boys must've spent too much time with each other because while anyone else would've simply taken his tone and statement at face front, Naruto donned a nervous look on his face.

"Um, yeah. I uh, forgot to go grocery shopping."

"Hn."

Padding softly back into the bedroom in a few steps, Sasuke bent down to retrieve the shirt he had taken off the night before.

Trying to control his 16 year-old hormones that were determined to point out Sasuke's attractive qualities, Naruto bounded out of bed with a skip in his step.

"Since I don't have any food in my kitchen, why don't we go out and eat ramen at Ichiraku?" Naruto suggested with a smile and an innocent expression.

In reply, Sasuke grimaced, before saying, "You may be able to live solely on ramen with the occasional venture into the other food groups, but I want to have a normal breakfast."

"Eh? But ramen **is** a normal breakfast." With a confused look on his face, Naruto walked over to his small built-in closet, "What else would you eat?"

Trying to decide if he was joking or was serious, Sasuke looked over to Naruto.

Naruto who was wearing a genuinely confused face... and nothing else.

Well, he still had his underwear on. (Boxers, in case you wanted to know.)

But other than that, Sasuke was able to see all the decimeters and centimeters and millimeters of Naruto's tanned skin. Distantly wondering how Naruto's skin was the same color all throughout, Sasuke had to shake his head in order to get himself to turn away from the sight.

And what a lovely sight it was.

(Oh, a question, you say? Ah, yes, yes, that question. Well, since 16 year-olds will forever be 16 year-olds, meaning that they are discovering their sexual preferences. They are also discovering their sexual orientation. (And yes, those are two different things.) As such, the two boys have already discovered that they are attracted to those of the same sex. Although one can say that the two are really only attracted to each other. You don't exactly see these two eyeballing anybody else. Maybe Gaara...)

Clearing his throat in yet another attempt to distract himself, he finally replied, "There's the eggs, bacon, ham, bread, and pancakes combination. There's the miso soup, rice and fish combination. And there's other stuff that don't include ramen."

"Really? The only times I don't eat ramen for breakfast are when Iruka takes me out to eat doughnuts." A wondering look fell upon Naruto's face, even while he dressed himself.

Meanwhile, Sasuke scrunched up his nose at the thought of eating doughnuts for breakfast. Why anyone would want to eat the sugary flour topped with frosting or filled with jam early in the morning was beyond him.

Finishing up his outfit, Naruto turned to Sasuke to say, "Well, since I haven't had a 'real breakfast' yet as you put it, why don't we go out, buy the things we need, and you can cook it when we get back?"

Contemplating on that solution, Sasuke gave a nod before smirking, "And how do you propose we pay for the food we need?"

Naruto's face fell as he realized that since the food they were going to buy were for him, he would need to pay for it all. And by what Sasuke had said, there was a lot of food to buy.

Almost anticipating the thoughts that would start running through Naruto's mind, Sasuke rolled his eyes a bit before continuing, "But since I am the one who wanted to have a real breakfast in the first place, I suppose it would only be right if I paid for the food. However, I expect you to pay me back sometime."

Naruto grinned at Sasuke, glad that he wouldn't have to spend his money on food that was not ramen. He grew excited; never having eaten a normal breakfast before, he couldn't wait to see what it would taste like.

Unfortunately, he wouldn't until the next few weeks were over.

It was a pity that our two boys were not clairvoyant, for if they were, they would've never went out to go grocery shopping. Together. On the day after yesterday. On the day when rumors were not rumors anymore, but truths.

---------

Not knowing what laid before them, the two sprinted to Sasuke's house to pick up more money before rushing back to the street they were at yesterday. Well, not that exact same street, but the street next to it, the one with all the food.

When they reached there, they didn't notice anything special at first. They continued to speak to each other and with Naruto's rather boisterous voice, most of the villagers heard their words.

(This is where we either shake our heads in pity for them, or rub our hands in glee for what they were about to experience.)

"So Sasuke, what are we going to eat today?" Naruto asked with an inquiring tone, one that also said 'I have no idea what's going on here, so tell me before I make a fool out of myself.'

Adding to the villagers' fu- thoughts, Sasuke seemed to know exactly what Naruto was not saying as he answered in a way that did not really fit the original question.

After all, who answers a question like that with an answer like this?

"Well, I was thinking that since miso soup and the fish might take some time to cook, we should eat the eggs, bacon, ham, bread, and pancakes combo. That means, obviously, we need eggs, meat, flour, sugar, syrup, and baking powder. We're also going to need oil." Sasuke said all of this easily, as if this was not the first time he had done this. 'This' as in dictate to Naruto what they needed to buy.

And as such, more thoughts were added to the villagers' questing minds.

"But won't the bread and pancakes take longer to cook than fish?" A confused look on his face said that he really didn't know what was going on.

"Usually, yes. But my... okaa-san taught me a way to cook them pretty fast." The hesitation in his words did not go unnoticed and the arm that Naruto swung around Sasuke's did not either.

As they walked to the stores that contained the food they needed, they managed to catch a few snatches of conversations.

"..._so cute..."_

"..._why they didn't get together..."_

"..._shopping together..."_

"..._domestic bliss..."_

"..._arm around... reassuring..."_

"..._freaking hot..."_

"..._didn't need to hide..."_

"..._would've accepted..."_

With each snatch of conversation, they bought a little more food. When they had all that they needed, they finally caught a full sentence that clued them in on who they were talking about... big time.

"**_Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun make such a cute couple, don't they?" _(1)**

The words drifted to the mentioned boys. The sound waves were received by their ear drums, translating the waves into coherent words.

And the two stood stock still.

For a second they could only stand there, but moments later, they continued walking, thinking, hoping, praying that they had heard wrong. Nevertheless, Naruto's arm slowly dropped from its position that it had been since they first entered the street.

Walking woodenly back to the beginning of the street, they tried to ignore all the whispers that were being... whispered around them and tried to speak normally. Soon though, their conversation turned.

"Um... Sasuke?"

Sasuke grunted, signaling that he had heard the boy, but refrained from saying anything.

"It's not just me, is it? I mean, they **are** acting weirdly around us, aren't they?"

A slight nod and Naruto continued, "And I **wasn't** imagining it when I heard them say... that, was I?"

Another shake of the head.

"Perhaps it would be best to get back quickly?" 'And ignore the comments being said.' were the unspoken words.

Unspoken because they were afraid that should they acknowledge the whispers, something would happen.

Unfortunately for the poor boys, something was to happen with or without their acknowledgement. It just turned out that it would be without, for moments after the two decided to calmly leave the street, a commotion started at the end of the street.

Word had spread through the streets that Sasuke and Naruto were shopping together. For food. For breakfast. And combined with the observation (because you can't really call it a rumor, it did happen after all), of the two going out last night to buy new sheets...

(Well, there was a reason why the last chapter was called 'A Nudge in the Wrong Direction'. As the two were about to find out right about... now.)

"Sasuke-kun! Naruto-kun!" A high-pitched voice screamed out. A high-pitched voice belonging to one white-haired, blue-eyed teenager. Well, she's five years older, so it's more like young adult.

Close to cringing, but not really, since she was one of the better fan girls, Sasuke and Naruto turned slowly around to meet the girl.

(If you were wondering why they didn't run, it's quite simple really. She would've caught up to them in a few seconds anyway. They needed to save their energy to confront her first. And speaking to her after you've ran a few miles non-stop at top speed is not a good idea.)

The running girl reached to where the two boys uncomfortably stood. They **were** in the middle of the street with a lot of people watching their every move.

"Ah, Seika-san, how may we help you?" Naruto was the one to address the girl as Sasuke seemed rather determined to keep his mouth shut. You'd think it would be Naruto whose mouth needed to be shut...

The girl, now named Seika, giggled before replying, "It's nothing, I just wanted to congratulate the two of you getting together. I always thought you guys were two-of-a-kind."

Sasuke, finally unable to keep his mouth shut, coolly said, "Excuse me Seika-san, but what exactly do you mean by that statement?"

Seika seemed to change personalities as she only smiled softly and said, "Oh, you guys don't have to worry and pretend anymore. We already know that the two of you are dating."

There was a twitch from one of the boys before both of them opened their mouths, "Dating!"

"Isn't that cute, the two of you are speaking at the same time. But yes, dating. We thought that you didn't want anyone to know, but we had to tell everyone so that you will see that you have our support."

"Your," there was another twitch, "Support?"

Seika nodded solemnly, "We understand that there are pressures in the two of you dating each other. Besides the fact that the two of you are male, you're also, well, you. But your fan clubs' presidents believed that it was best to inform the village so that you wouldn't have to hide anymore."

Seika was so enthralled in telling them of their support in them and other various things that she never noticed the two boys in front of her slowly grow more angry and confused. At the words of 'fan clubs' presidents', something seemed to have clicked and the two calmed down. Slightly.

Meanwhile, the white haired girl was still speaking, "...think it's great that you two got together. Speaking from a girl's point of view, I think it's so romantic how the two of you got hooked after years of rivalry and then friendship. And I have to admit, seeing the two of you together," here she blushed, "is kind of hot."

'Hot? What? The hell.' Were the thoughts running through the minds of the two 'dating' teenagers.

Restraining his temper, Sasuke calmly stopped the girl from rambling on any more and said, "I don't know where the two of them had gotten this information, but Naruto and I am not, were not, and never will be dating each other."

Naruto hesitated before adding in a soft, "Yeah, we haven't been dating and the chance that we will is close to nothing."

Glancing at Naruto peculiarly before turning back to Seika, he continued, "Seika-san, I would appreciate it if you would stop the rumors that are going around about our relationship."

Seika smiled at them, but it wasn't the smile that they wanted. It was a smile something along the lines off, 'I'll indulge you for now, but we all know what the truth is.' And right now, the truth was that the two were and are dating.

Before leaving the two in peace however, she added something that would make the two boys pause a bit.

"If you want others to think that you're really not dating, it might be best if you don't have sex when other people can hear. And if you guys don't go to buy new sheets right after. What else... oh yeah, and especially don't go out to buy breakfast food together the next morning."

With that, Seika laughed and left, trailing another comment behind her, "I still think you guys look hot together!"

She left the two boys standing in the middle of the street with rather interesting faces. A cross between incredulity, disbelief, anger, confusion, and oh yeah, embarrassment.

With burning faces, the two stalked back towards Naruto's apartment. Not really thinking that it wasn't the best place to go to, together. Especially after that scene. They walked there in silence, each one fuming in their own way; underlying thoughts ignored by both. The thoughts that said that it would be nice if those accusations were true.

--------

Reaching the home, the groceries were put in their appropriate places. When there was nothing left to do except for cooking the food and eating, the queasy stomachs present in both of them strongly protested.

Finding nothing else to do, they sat down abruptly at the kitchen table.

"Naruto..."

"I know. But what are we going to do! Everyone thinks that we're dating!" It seemed that the full implication of the words suddenly hit Naruto as he jerked out of his seat and paced the little space available for him to pace.

"Argh! And they thought we were... we were.."

"Having sex! Just say it" Sasuke, though anxious as well, could not help but smirk at Naruto's inability to speak about sex.

Seemingly hearing the smirk in his voice, as Naruto was not facing Sasuke, he whirled around and shouted.

"It's not funny! They think we were having sex! When would we have been having sex! We were busy all day with... the... bed."

"Oh no!" Naruto sat back down on the seat, burying his head in his arms.

"I told you it sounded like we were having sex." Sasuke said smugly, quite content to at least momentarily forget what was going on.

A muffled "Shut up" was heard before Naruto picked his head back up. "What are we going to do."

The dark haired boy sighed before speaking, "Well, the first thing we have to do is talk to Sakura and Hinata-chan. They were the ones who started it all, so we should go there."

There was a blank look on Naruto's face before he finally uttered a "What? Why them?"

Giving out a frustrated sigh, and wondering if sighing so much in such a short amount of time was healthy, Sasuke smacked Naruto before answering, "You idiot, didn't you hear what Seika-san said?"

"Um... yeah. Something about our fan clubs' presidents telling everyone. Eh! Sakura and Hinata are the presidents?"

Trying to contain yet another sigh that was yearning to come out, Sasuke merely nodded.

"That's why we need to find the two of them, and fast."

Naruto nodded before getting out of his seat and towards the door.

"We should eat first though. We didn't eat too much last night."

Naruto made a look and said, "I don't think I can eat anything right now. Maybe after we talk to Sakura-chan and Hinata-chan."

Sasuke gave a "Hmm" before getting out of his seat as well and out the door.

"They should still be at their houses, it's still early. Let's go."

With that the two sprinted toward the house of one Haruno Sakura.

Getting there, the two proceeded to drag her to their training clearing. Naruto left, then brought Hinata. Moments later, Sasuke left and brought Ino at the words of the two presidents. And then they began to talk... er, argue.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1) **Yes, it deserves bold **and** italics. And no, I don't know who said this.

**La/-/er-** This could've been longer. You know, if I put in the conversation between the three girls and the two boys. But then my next chapter would be empty-ish. Or it might be too long... Anyway, since this was supposed to be part of the last chapter, you'll have to accept this for now. And I update quickly too, a few hours earlier than I was supposed to. It's not Friday for another couple of hours or so, lol. But it's because everybody was so nice and reviewed so quickly.

So expect the next chapter Sunday. If I get a harder-to-beat laziness block before then (that's what happened with this chapter, 's why my written times stretch two days), I'll try to squeeze it out on Monday afternoon. I'll write on the train or something. After that, it's most likely the chapters will come once a week. Most likely.

**Alright, that's it for now, review!**

Written: 9/8/04 (5:58 p.m. to 9 something) - 9/9/04 (12-ish to 3:08:27 p.m.)

_Edited: 11/15/04_

Re-edited: 4/27/05


	4. The Push Over

**Disclaimer: **Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er-** Well, it's a day late, but also 4 pages longer than normal. Although you'll be able to see why after some part... I feel bad for doing this but, well, it's only a day late. And sorry about the weirdness of the chapter, at some point, my brain decided that this was the best road to take and thus, it is highly unlikely that I will be able to change it as in issues like this, I cannot consciously do anything. So I hope you enjoy the chapter! Thanks for reviewing and reading! And please tell me if there's something wrong in this chapter, typos and the like. I wanted to post this before I went to sleep, so it's not as edited.

**Review Responses:** Unfortunately, I have school life, so, it's ordered by first to review to the last.

**_ghostninja85-_** Yes, I think what you were talking about may be _Naruto no Hohoemi_ by Nazo. But then I twisted it, as I indicated in the last chapter and as you'll see in this chapter. A little late, but still, only a couple of days after, not bad, right?

**_Night-Owl123-_** A bit late, but the last one was fast cuz I was crazy, lol. Thanks for reviewing!

**_Cookie6-_** Yes, yes, it's a good thing you pointed the Sasuke thing out. I did it subconsciously as a further writing thing as you'll see. But you made me **really** realize it, so thanks. Glad you think it's cute! Making me blush...

**_Nanashi2_**- Lol, re-reading your review actually made me calm down a bit. Interesting, since your review was rather perky. Glad you like the scenes I write, most are spontaneous, so I'm glad it turned out good. I should be the one to be shaking your hand. You write nice Yu-gi-oh fanfics! Sign of admiration, hehe, that's cool. And here's the next update, though a bit late.

**EscagirlUK-** Here's the next one! Definitely writing more.

**Blue 1/2-** Hum, I was going to e-mail you, but I forgot... Happy you think it's funny. And this has made a bit of people laugh/giggle when they usually don't, I'm glad. Aw, no need to formally grovel! I really don't think it's that awesome. If I had Pocky, however... But yes, here's the next chapter, enjoy!

**_izumi-_** Yes, the villagers have nasty minds, lol. Yes, you also point out the best things, same thing as Cookie6, thanks for pointing it out to me. :grin: Glad you think it's funny enough to have your boyfriend look at you funny.

**_Dark Mimiru-chan-_** Oh dear, your one-liners keep giving me perverted thoughts. Naughty girl.

**_Kyuubi-chan-_** Don't worry, no way am I dropping this. And you'll see about the boys... alright, alright, they're getting together, it's just a matter of time. They do look hot, don't they? Haha, La La Land, did you have fun there?

**_Sora Kohaku-_** I think your sentence isn't supposed to make sense, but for some reason, I totally get what you said, and you're completely right. It's so hard not to rub our hands in glee. (maniacal laughter)

**_AnimeFreakPerson-_** :bows: Thank you, thank you. Well, is 3-4 days soon enough? And brave is good!

**Spooy-** Some people would've, and I wasn't exactly saying it very er... pleasantly. Yes, nice breeze when he sleeps. Hehe, you think it's cute. That's great! And I hope you read the third chapter, as this is the fourth.

**_YaoiLoverS-_** Nobody actually said it, I just know some people don't like it. And I feel the same way too. I get on a little high when I see my penname on the screen. Lol. Need more tissues?

**_Nuppu-_** They are cute, and they don't even know it. Great plot? This doesn't really have one... Well, I wrote this chapter over a span of 2 days... so, hum, well anywayz! Here's the next one!

**_Seito-_** (Take that Seika!) Ooo pure genius, that's nice... didn't I say that about you? Erm, yes here's the next one that I'm writing in while ignoring the need to review Yoake Mae chapter 4.

**_Aimi-chan-_** Hehe, not having sex, not yet anyway. I suppose you can't haunt me... We must celebrate! Killua/Gon is like THE best pairing out there. (Even better than sasunaru...:shifty eyes: those two have issues, alright, K/G is like pure) Aw, I was hoping you had some. I goggle'd, but didn't find anything and I read all the stories here. The ones that are here are pretty nice though. And I have the same feeling, I'm too afraid of butchering their characters to write it as well. Pooie, no K/G fics. I demand you to write one! I hold chapter 5 ransom!

**_Yuen-chan-_**Haha! Bad thoughts! And yes, my poor name is all, ew, now. You know what's interesting though? Your penname holds the second part of my real name... O.o

**_foxylittlechibi-_** Really, not laughed so hard in ages! You need to laugh more then! I will provide! For as long as I can anyway... Oh, that's different. I will take care and keep cool. The fan helps.

Finally finished! Whee! That took... half an hour, wow. And these responses were shorter than normal. Anywayz, a day late, but here we are, chapter 4!

* * *

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter IV --- The La/-/er

_**The Push Over**_

Today is to be set as quite a memorable day.

There are two reasons for that.

The first and most important reason that was to be passed down for generations to come was that this was the day when Rokuda-- er Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke started publicly going out. Never mind that it wouldn't be true for another few weeks.

The other reason was that this was the first time the two boys met with their fan clubs' presidents as their acting presidents. And Yamanaka Ino. You can't forget her.

Never mind that it wasn't the most happiest of meetings, nor the calmest, it was still the first.

And sad to say, the only, but that's another story for another time. Oh no... wait, it's part of this story too.

As we were leading towards, indeed, this was to be an unforgettable day. Especially to Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke.

Sasuke's ---------- POV-ish

Finally managing to gather all those responsible for starting the rumor in the first place, Sasuke's deceptively calm mood was wrecked as he pasted on his fiercest Death Glare (tm of Heero Yuy of GW/AC) onto his face and directed it towards the three teenagers.

As many of you had probably noticed, upon reaching Naruto's apartment, his reaction to the rumor was minimal. As it was, he was too focused upon teasing Naruto.

After all, seeing Naruto pout and groan in frustration was rather... distracting. And his frantic pacing caused a bit of his clothes to raise up. And when Naruto picked his head back up after burying it in his arms, he had this absolutely adorable mussed-up-hair kind of face that made him just want to melt.

But now was not the time nor place to discuss Naruto's cuteness.

No, now was the time to inform the girls in front of him **politely** about Naruto and his non-existent relationship.

That's right, politely.

Aw, to hell with polite, he was going to rip them apart. **(1)**

He could just imagine now the reaction of his fan club. And now that Naruto had one too...

Sasuke shuddered at the thought. There was no way in hell that he would willingly put up with the living nightmare that was bound to come.

Well... maybe if Naruto was...

No. No way. Totally not thinking about that.

A pause.

Maybe later.

Sasuke tried to shake the thoughts out of his head, but quite obviously, he failed.

Nevertheless, he was determined to force the girls to see the truth, no matter what it took.

----------

Throughout all of Sasuke's silent pondering the three teenaged girls waited to see the reactions of the two boys. What they had told everyone was vastly important and they knew that they would not have gone through the day without confronting the two at least once.

They knew **that**, but they didn't expect what came next.

When Sasuke first glared at the three girls, they sported puzzled looks upon their faces. While they understood that the boys might not have been totally happy about their relationship being forced out into the open, they didn't expect to receive a Death Glare (tm)!

With slight apprehension, they watched as Sasuke opened his mouth. And immediately cringed at his tone.

"My dear friends, if I may ask, what is the deal with the rumor that is going around about mine and Naruto's relationship?"

While the volume of his voice was quite normal, his tone was chilling, cold to the core and then some.

As brave as the two of them were, Sakura and Ino could only gape at the tone of his words while Hinata decided to answer.

"Sasuke-kun, I know that this was probably not the best way to tell the village of your relationship with Naruto-kun, but we believed that it would have been best if it was out in the open. Something like this should not be kept secret." Hinata spoke with a soft, calm tone, knowing that at this time, it was best to be passive.

It was a rather good thing that it was Hinata that spoke, for at her words, both Sasuke and Naruto, who was pacing in the background, relaxed slightly, but not by much.

Speaking once again in a tone that was only slightly warmer than the last, Sasuke continued to glare at the three.

"Perhaps you thought it would've been the best. But I don't think you realize that in order for it to be the best, it would have to be true."

At his words, the girls donned a confused look.

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, but even as she spoke, understanding dawned upon her.

"I mean that Naruto and I am not, never have, been in a romantic relationship. Together." Sasuke said with a stern voice, willing them to believe him.

However, even he knew that all hope would be lost as sympathetic looks fell unto the three girls.

Naruto, seeing this, barged into the circle they had unconsciously formed, loudly proclaiming, "Sasuke and I never were in a relationship! We're not trying to hide it! We're not ashamed! We don't care if everyone knew. But we're not in one!" By the time he finished, he began to breath heavily, seemingly on the edge of hyperventilating.

Looking over at him worriedly, Sasuke punched him on his arm, following it up with a, "Calm down idiot, getting all excited isn't going to help."

And so Naruto calmed, by a teensy bit.

Not bothering to try to calm him down more, Sasuke turned back to the girls. "Do you understand? It's not that we don't want anyone to know, but the truth is, there is nothing to know!"

Unfortunately, his persuasive skills seemed to need more work, as the three sitting in front of him only shook their heads in what seemed to be pity.

Ino, deciding that now was a good time to input her opinion spoke. "You don't have to hide it anymore Sasuke-kun, we know the truth. We heard the two of you yesterday. You really shouldn't be trying to deny your relationship with Naruto-kun, it's not healthy for the two of you. The best thing--"

"Yesterday?" A puzzled look took its place on Sasuke's face before his previous words came back to him.

He groaned before saying, "I know what you're talking about. For your information, despite what it may have sounded like, Naruto and I were not having sex yesterday. And how did you know about it anyway?"

Ino looked at him curiously, "When Kiba-kun was going over to Naruto-kun's house, he heard the noises and thought it would be best to inform me. I must say he did the right thing."

A blink before Sasuke responded, "Kiba? He told you about what we were doing? Didn't you realize we weren't having sex?"

"That's right! Sasuke was helping me assemble my new bed and mattress!" Seemingly intent on proving his innocence, his virgin innocence, thank you very much, Naruto jumped into the conversation.

"I don't think that making a bed would really create the noises that I heard yesterday. Really, you guys should come up with better excuses, if you want us to even remotely believe you."

"But it's true! If you come to my apartment, you'll see that my bed is new. I just bought it yesterday!"

"Naruto... we've never been to your house before. We wouldn't know what your old bed would look like. And for all we know, you could've bought it a few days ago and it would still look new. You'll have to come up with something better than that." Sakura deducted quite intelligently, even if it was wrong.

"I don't have to come up with anything, since it's TRUE!" Once again, Naruto seemed to have gone overboard with his reactions. One would wonder why he was so anxious.

"Why are you so uptight anyway? Even if it wasn't true, **if**, why would you be objecting to it so much? Unless of course, it is true, but you're so concentrated on denying it that you don't realize that it makes us suspicious and thus know definitely that you guys are dating." Sakura said this in a rush, as if her brilliant thoughts were just begging to come out to solidify her theory. **(2)**

There was a confused look on Naruto's face as he tried to understand what she had said before he exclaimed, "I'm not protesting so much because I'm trying to deny it! I'm protesting it because it's not true!" He gave a frustrated sigh before sitting smack down on the ground.

"I give up."

With a sigh, Sasuke attempted to pick up where Naruto left off. By this time, the rage that was simmering beneath his skin began to die off, rather then grow.

He never knew trying to convince (what appeared to be) rabid yaoi fan girls that what they thought was wrong was so hard to do.

Sasuke attempted to try one last time, if this didn't work, he didn't know what would.

"You guys think that Naruto and I have been together for a while and just didn't want to tell anyone, right?"

A series of nods came from the girls.

"Well, what would you say if I told you that up until last week, I was actually dating someone?"

There was a moment of silence before a gasp was heard from Sakura. "What did you just say?" said with wide eyes, it was apparent that she couldn't believe what she had just heard.

"I said that there's no way that Naruto and I could've been together since up until recently, I was dating someone else." Sasuke said calmly, with no sign of dishonesty, not even a twitch of an eye.

A glance towards Naruto showed that he was stunned beyond words. It was apparent that he knew nothing of what Sasuke said, whether it be a fact or an excuse.

Almost certain that the words he spoke were simply an excuse - a horrible one, but one nevertheless - Sakura and Ino narrowed their eyes in suspicion as Hinata merely looked on in curiosity.

"If what you say is true, who have you been seeing? And why didn't we know?" Sakura demanded Sasuke to explain. And knowing that if he didn't, they wouldn't believe, he spoke.

Although there was still a niggling feeling that they wouldn't believe it. To be honest, at times, neither did he.

"You didn't know because the two of us made sure to be careful. And we weren't going out for very long."

Recognizing that Sasuke was trying to stall, Ino impatiently broke in.

"Are you going to tell us who she is or what?"

"I never said I was dating a girl." There was a hint of smugness in his voice.

But why would Sasuke be smug?

At his words, expressions of surprise appeared as they believed that Sasuke was trying to prove that was straight and not dating Naruto. They didn't expect that he only wanted to prove that he wasn't dating Naruto. But this meant that he really was gay...

It seemed that Sasuke's stalling was agitating even the calm Hinata, for she exclaimed loudly, "Sasuke-kun, would you please just tell us who you were dating?"

"Gaara."

A simple name, and a mere two syllables, but it created reactions and expressions from the four present that they had not expected to feel when they had come.

Shock, surprise, confusion, hints of disgust, feelings of being lost, bits of fear, and anger. Most importantly, anger.

There was a stunned moment of silence before their emotions were let out.

"WHAT! Gaara!"

"You've got to be kidding!"

"Are you not feeling well, Sasuke?" This earned a roll of the eyes from the boy.

And finally a reaction that was quite unexpected, but perhaps shouldn't have been. Coming from the president of his fan club, it was something that she held a role in playing. Righteous anger on his behalf. Although the fact that Sakura was releasing the anger onto the person who she felt it for was rather puzzling.

"This is not something to be joked about, Sasuke." Not attaching an honorific to his name in her anger, her tone also took on a cold chill, one that was quite similar to the voice that Sasuke had spoken in moments before.

Startled at the tone of her voice and the implication her words held, the other four could only look on and listen as she continued.

"I understand that you do not want anyone to know of your relationship with Naruto. But to shove something like this in our faces!" There was a pause as she seemed to attempt to rein in her emotions.

"Gaara may not be who he had been, but there is no excuse to use the boy as your flimsy attempt in weaseling out of the truth. Using another's name like that is absolutely disgusting. And even if you were to use this excuse as a way out, you must've know that we would not believe you. To think that Uchiha Sasuke had to speak such ridiculous lies makes me question what is going on with you. I can't look at you right now. I hope that by the time I see you again, you will have thought out what is the right thing to do in this situation."

With that, Sakura flounced away from the clearing. Exuding an aura of righteous anger, it was hard to describe her speech as something idiotic as it was obvious that she seemed to believe every word that came out of her mouth.

In no shape to think of anything else but the words and the execution of her words, they barely noticed Sakura's departure.

And as such, they never noticed the smile playing on her lips.

----------

Disbanding the group after Sakura left, Sasuke and Naruto returned to the apartment with nothing to show for their meeting. Nothing but the feelings left over.

On Naruto's part, shock of Sasuke's confession and fatigue at the thoughts of the days to come.

On Sasuke's part, slight confusion at Sakura's reaction and anxiety of the days to come.

There was, yet again, a moment of silence between the two of them before Naruto, deciding that silence is indeed **not** golden, spoke up.

"I'm not sure if I should be asking you this," Naruto said with a slightly nervous laugh, "but were you telling the truth back there?"

"Hmm? Which part?"

"I suppose everything that you said."

"Ah, but what you **really** want to know is if I really went out with Gaara."

"Just about, yeah."

"Well, I suppose you'll never know as I'm not about to tell you." A look of complacent pleasure lazed across the features of the pale boy. "Or, I suppose if you really want to know, you can just ask Gaara yourself."

Naruto gaped at Sasuke for a moment, mouth hanging, exposing all the teeth in his mouth. And he had quite a bit.

"Nani! Why won't you tell me?" Naruto whined. **(3)**

Sasuke smiled before smirking once more, "Because it's fun to tease you. And since the next few days are going to be hell, I'm taking all the chances I can get to have fun."

"Eh? What do you mean the next few weeks are going to be hell?"

Sasuke laughed, a nice pleasant laugh that ran through the room, before getting up and heading towards to door.

"You'll find out later today, if not tomorrow. I'm going to go home, try not to leave your house too much if you know what's good for you."

And with that, the door closed behind him and Naruto was left alone in the apartment.

_'Stupid bastard, telling me to stay at home like a coward while he goes out. Who does he think I am!'_

And with that, Naruto also got up and left the house. A foolish thing to do as he found out in mere moments.

----------

The next few weeks did indeed feel like hell to the two boys. But while they were in hell, most of the village was in heaven. To them, Sasuke and Naruto seemed like a match in heaven. While Naruto was calmed by Sasuke, Sasuke was more active as a result of being dragged with Naruto quite almost everywhere.

At least he was until the two of them got jumped one fine afternoon.

It is quite a story, a long one yet so very short and a tale that was--

Ah, you want to hear the story? No matter what? Well, if you wish it.

It was two days after that fateful day. (The fateful day being the day on which the meeting was held.)

And quite wonderfully, it was a wonderful afternoon.

With the sun shining and clouds drifting across the light blue sky. Squirrels squirreling, or doing what ever it is squirrels do. Eat acorns or something, so it is believed. Although what people do not realize is that what squirrels are actually doing as they hopped fences and traveled across lawns, up trees, into houses, wherever you see them was collecting data of the terrain. Indeed the squirrels have been and is continuing to plot to take over the human world. With a bit more mapping, they would be able to create a diagram that showed every inch, every centimeter of the human world.

If only they would stop changing things around as soon as they were close to finishing.

Those darn humans! They probably suspected and thus grew more trees, cut down others, knocked down buildings and built others. Created roads where there weren't any and doing something to those already existing. Darn them! And we the squirrels were so close!

Eh? What? Oh, so terribly sorry, wandered off track, did we?

So anyway, birds chirping at what seemed to be every available tree space. Branches filled with leaves and those not filled. The rooftops of every house, the open windows of every building. The chirping overfilled the sounds of nature, drowning out all other noises. Distracting all the humans from noticing the squirreling squirrels that were yet again so close to success.

Birds of every shape, size and color. And what colors there were! Bright ones, dark ones, those that blended, those that stood out. The birds continued to create a racket the caused the whole town of Konoha to---

Oh dear, we did it again. Our apologies, now, where were we?

So it was a quite wonderful day. With nature in harmony with humans and humans in harmony with nature. Thoughts of goodwill floated through the town, infecting all that spoke, all that heard, all that saw, and all that felt.

On this absolutely wonderful day, Sasuke and Naruto decided to venture out into the open, wanting to spar to stretch those bit of muscle that cramped up during the two days they were hidi-- um, protecting themselves from the fan girls that were at their heels.

But they could not stay holed up any longer and so they traveled to the field they had always trained at, believing that the most obvious place was therefore the safest.

Normally this was true. But we all know that Sasuke and Naruto do not follow normal ways.

And so, they were jumped.

But we're jumping ahead of ourselves, so we'll back up a bit.

The two boys had peaceful morning. Sort of. If you counted waking up in complete darkness as a result of the curtains being pulled peaceful. And slight pitter patters outside the doors indicating that people were waiting out there.

Obsessive weirdos.

Anyways, in a series of hidden notes, Sasuke and Naruto had agreed to meet that day to spar a little. See each other as well, as they had missed each other. Not that they would admit it. Never.

Which is exactly why after sneaking underground to reach a spot 2 miles from the clearing and then running around the clearing to shake off the remaining followers, the two embraced each other with strong emotions bordering on bliss.

Of course they didn't miss each other.

So after that little embrace they both agreed to deny about, all the while not noticing a little invention named the camera was hiding a little ways away, the two began to spar.

And blah blah blah. This is a humor/romance fiction. Not an action one, read a fight somewhere else.

So during the middle of their spar, there was a pause in their flurry of fists and kunai, in which there was immediately a war cry.

Or what sounded like one.

Out from the surrounding trees, two teenage girls jumped out and down towards the unsuspecting boys, somehow managing to maneuver their bodies in such a way that they were able to cause the boys to fall towards each other.

As such, they created this nice little pile of boy, boy, squealing girl, girl.

On the very bottom, Sasuke bore a rather annoyed face that for a split second had a rather pleased look.

And we won't tell you why he was pleased as you should already know.

So that was the story of Sasuke and Naruto getting jumped, rather short, isn't it?

Oh yes, there was one more thing though.

After Sasuke and Naruto got jumped, they left the two girls to go hoem only to leave the next day to go out to eat.

And they got jumped at Ichiraku as well.

So they didn't get to eat as they had to run home when the girls decided to congratulate them. Several times.

They expressed their glee by telling them how wonderful and cute it was that they finally got together.

Of course, the two boys made faces at them as they said it.

The girls thought it was cute that they were doing the same thing.

They asked for them to kiss. Just one or two. Or maybe make-out.

They were willing to pay.

The boys protested and said, "No way possible." Quite in unison.

The girls aw'ed and Sasuke and Naruto ran away.

It was getting too gushy.

In their hurry to get away, the two never noticed.

They didn't see the foot that a girl had stuck out.

And so Naruto tripped.

And guess what?

Sasuke turned around to see what was going on.

And he caught him, oh yes he did.

Arms with arms, legs with legs.

And most importantly, lips to lips.

Yes indeedy, it was another accidental kiss.

But quite different.

Oh yes.

Because instead of pulling away from each other in disgust, do you know what they did?

Yup, they started kissing each other.

It started getting heavy. Tongues were getting involved and all.

But then there was a flash and the two broke away.

They stared at each other for a moment, not daring to say a word. Then they jerked away from each other, getting up and all, when there was another flash.

Faces flushing the two hurried away from the street, each departing to their own houses to think long and deep. After suffereing a couple of days like this, they each departed their houses to consult with their mentors. And despite popular belief... they didn't help at all.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1) **You may think this is an awfully extreme reaction, but ever heard of the phrase, "The lady doth protests too much"? ...Or something like that. That's right, he's still in denial, no matter what else goes on, he will be. For a little while more anyway... Besides, think of what the yaoi fan girls would do, in fact, just think of what you would do, lol.

**(2) **Besides that I don't know what I just wrote here, it's also a reference to the same thing in note 1. The whole 'protesting too much means that it's true' thing.

**(3) **Yes, yes I know, unnecessary Japanese, but right here, nani sounds so much better than what, doesn't it?

**La/-/er-** Ah, I'm a bad girl, I left the Gaara issue alone. Well, the next chapter, most of you will like. It should come within a week or so. I have school and all that. Oh wait, Jewish holiday on Thursday and Friday. Maybe by the end of this week then. But I have to write chapter 8 of Without Life, so maybe not. We'll see. Definitely by next Monday though. (The notes here and up there are different from normal as I wrote them after I was finished with the chapter and was in a hurry to post.)

Did you guys notice where I had left for a little while and then came back to write? It's turns different. I ate. Maybe I shouldn't eat and write...

**Alright, review and tell me what you thought!**

Edited: 4/27/05


	5. Consultations

**Disclaimer:** Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er- **There was originally a really long and pointless note in here. Basically asking what pairings the readers would like; by chapter 10, it has been narrowed down. What are they? They are: Sasuke/Naruto, Kakashi/Iruka, Neji/Lee, Kiba/Hinata, Shino/Sakura, Shikamaru/Ino. And other misc pairings. Which now include (a short-lived) Jiraiya/Tsunade. So that's it, read on now.

**Review Responses:** (Ooh! Lookie that, I hafta watch _One Piece_! No ordering, how nice!)

**_Night-Owl123-_** Ya noe, I see your penname just about everywhere... But yes, glad you like it and here's the next chapter.

**_Seito-_**Lol, it's never pointless to write a review, 'specially since I haven't spoken to you in some time. Yes, yes, Gaara and Sasuke. Naw, I'm not a genius, just perverted :beaming grin:. Here's the next chappie. And remember, don't be greedy.

**_SasuNaru-kun-_** Hum, I read your poem, reviewed it, and here's the next chapter!

**_ghostninja85-_** Almost blatant in previous, but nothing beats it like full-on kissing. Yup, you'll see about the Gaara/Sasuke thing, as soon as I figure it out, lol. I know exactly what you're dying to find out in _Without Life_. But as a lil preview, since I'm not updating that yet, your questions will be answered in the next few chapters, but not the next one. I need it to set the stage for the answering.

**kat- **Haha, glad you love the story and the bed thing _was_ rather ingenious, lol. Hehe, you'll find out about the Gaara thing. And if you kill me for the cliffhanger... you'll never know what happens as I don't think I'll be able to update from the beyond O.o

**_Dark Mimiru-Chan-_** Perverted since you were born, so many comments I could say to that... And don't worry about not having anything fun to say, as long as I know you still like it. (Although there's a sense of underlying disappointment...)

**_Aimi-chan-_** Yeah, I know all about Gaara and Naruto :narrow eyes, but his name just popped up, and it didn't help that I had already hinted it in chapter 3. Yes, yes, I agree with everything you said about K/G. Not holding out on chapter 5 (not on purpose anyway), but I'll see about the K/G fic thing. But you have to promise to read it if I ever write it! And I don't know anything about your lack of writing skills, that's what I thought about myself, no one seems to agree with me though.

**_foxylittlechibi-_** Happy you think it's good. And you're right, the yaoi thing's coming up, starts in this chapter in fact! And the yaoi detail is the whole point of this fic, and the hopefully humorous situations, so no worries. I'm not sure about taking care as my shoulder is already starting to hurt, but the 58 degree weather is definitely keeping me cool.

**_Kyuubi-kun-_** Cool, I'll be sure to ask for a postcard. Sarcastic humor seems to be my forte, although to be honest, when I was writing this chapter, it didn't seem so funny. Of course, then I went back and read it... Ah, yes Gaara, we shall see... oo, maybe I should have him date someone too...?

**Kaoru-** :stern face: Continuing. Lol, yeah, here's the next chapter.

**EscagirlUK- **Yes, it was quite a wonderful kiss, wasn't it? And if you read the summary, you would've known what the plan was in the very beginning. But you'll see in this chapter anyway.

**_midd-_** To be honest, I prefer Gaara with Lee if anybody at all. Naruto belongs to Sasuke damnit! Haha, yeah, it'll take some time (very little actually), but Sasuke will get his head out of the clouds.

**_Sora Kohaku-_ **Hehe, ecstatic that you liked it. Yes, accidental kisses are stuff of the legends in this story, 'specially after episode three.

**_AnimeFreakPerson-_** Wasn't it! You were the only one who said anything about it (at first), and I thought the squirrels and birds were so nice too! (I read your profile and now I know why you noticed. Loved your quotes, btw) Yup, don't worry about me not updating, it's just a matter of when. Never over a month, or three weeks, or even two. Although maybe over one...

**_Yuen-chan-_** I've discovered that a few minutes after I've eaten, I get on a high that causes me to become very weird. Not a good thing if I'm trying to write serious stuff. And this only happens after dinner, so the only people who know are the ones I know online. And it's great that you understood (2) as it was semi-important. Ah, names, there's so many parts to them.

**_Spooy-_** Whee! It's you! And pooie about ff.n Haha, Naruto and Sasuke are in the same situation. Although to tell the truth, I don't remember what I wrote in chapter 3... Oh wait, now I do, never mind then. I feel the same way about waiting, it doesn't help me to become not lazy though. That's the only issue with me and updating, not that I'll lose interest or that I'll not know what to write (since this is humor, it doesn't really matter, ya noe?), it's the fact that I don't want to sit there in front of the computer typing it out when I can read other people's things that are already typed out. Lol, I'm not sure if that made sense. But anyways, great that you're loving it, and here's more!

**_RukaIayLomperGay-_** Yes! The squirrels are up to something I say! Lol. Hehe, so glad (in a way) that you're getting yelled at for reading this. Thankies ever so much. And here's the next chapter, hope it was as good as the last! And really, if they insists on getting a good internet connection, the schools should not expect us to not sneak on!

**_Shiomi-_** Oh lordy, it's you! And yes, yes, I know, Gaara is usually with Naruto if nobody else. (Although I have seen Gaara/Neji and Gaara/Lee) But it's part of the plot damnit! The plot :cough: The plot that doesn't really exist beyond getting Sasuke and Naruto together, but yeah... And yes, SasuNaru is the best out of all of them. :hugs back... a little too tightly:

**Dedication:** Ooh, the first one in this story. Chapter dedicated to **_AnimeFreakPerson_** for saying something about the squirrels and birds. Also dedicated to **_RukaIayLomperGay_** for the same reason. And for liking the squirrels and their plot to take over the world. And for sharing my paranoia, lol.

* * *

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter V --- The La/-/er 

_**Consultation**_

In all the excitement concerning the events revolving our two main characters and their fan clubs, the two of them managed to get the thought to go to their mentors to ask for advice.

Naruto went to his most trusted teacher, the one who was, admittedly, allowed to laugh at their predicament, but then solemnly offer their help in battling the rumor.

This did not happen.

Oh, he laughed alright, but then he only gave the boy a pitying look. He spoke solemnly too, of course.

Speaking of the hardships they would supposedly face, the shame in denial, the need for their love to grow. On and on he went, eyes twinkling as he spoke.

Naruto was only able to watch his teacher in horror, silently praying that the words were not coming out of his most favorite, sane person.

It turns out that the teacher who always treated him to ramen, the one who scolded him for numerous reasons; his dear, dear Iruka-sensei was not as together as he seemed to be.

So Naruto went to the only other person he sorta looked up to.

The Godaime, Tsunade-hime.

Even before he set foot into the tower, his instincts were telling him to run.

Run as far away from the Hokage as he could.

Because if he didn't he had the feeling that he would be scarred for life.

It was the wrong time to ignore the instincts that had never before failed him, as he found out soon enough.

Passing by the numerous shinobi lingering around the tower - some to hand in reports, some to receive missions and yet others just to hang out - Naruto noticed something.

Every one of them were talking about him.

Maybe not every one, but the ones attempting to eat didn't seem to be that interested in their food anymore.

Despairing at the turn of events- _Why was it that no one notices when I'm trying to get attention, but they all stare when I'm trying to hide? _- Naruto quickly scurried towards Tsunade's office.

Abandoning his usual routine of bursting in and crying out the ever impolite "Tsunade-baba!", he merely burst in and leapt at her throat.

A violent entrance, but considering what he heard moments before he entered, he felt it was rather justified.

And most would agree with him.

After all, it's just not right to use pictures of you and your totally-not-boyfriend friend sweating and half naked after a spar as a bargaining chip in a game against the most openly perverted man in Konoha.

Not without you personally getting profit from it anyway.

What made it even worse, as he soon found out, was that it had been Jiraiya that was using it as his payment in the games.

Apparently, the desire to possess those pictures overpowered her usual bad luck and allowed Tsunade to win against Jiraiya, a feat most rare between the two.

So anyway, without any warning, Naruto had pounced on the Hokage and was unable to be pried off until moments later.

Mainly because Jiraiya had said, "Tsunade-hime, the negatives of these photos will be the prize next time, alright?" Receiving a nod, he gave a lecherous grin and continued, "Take care of those photos Tsunade-hime, you may not be able to get more. They sell out quite fast you know."

A dilemma approached Naruto as he thought about getting off of Tsunade and swinging a nice left hook at Jiraiya.

The problem was solved when he summoned his toad and escaped.

Several moments passed with Naruto and Tsunade exchanging glares.

Then, using what little breath she had, Tsunade remarked, "If you let me take pictures of the two of you together, I'll give you higher ranking missions from now on."

In his shock, Naruto's grip loosened and Tsunade took the opportunity to leave her chair.

Rubbing her throat, she said, "Denial isn't just a river in Egypt."

There was a blank look on Naruto's face before Tsunade clarified.

"It's from a book about a planet named Earth. There was a river named The Nile in a country, Egypt, and it sounds like the word denial, so when people said that phrase to others, it meant that the person was in denial about something."

The blank look on Naruto's face disappeared, only to be replaced by a confused one.

Tsunade gave an exasperated sigh, rolled her eyes and spoke.

"What did you want, brat? You know it's Team 7-10's vacation time so you're not allowed missions." **(1)**

There was a nod and Naruto opened his mouth only to be interrupted by a puff of smoke.

"Hokage-sama, you didn't by any chance-- ah, Naruto! I believe Sasuke is looking for you." The one-eyed man said, voice appearing to be caught between sounding bored and mischievously ecstatic. Quite similar to another teacher of Konoha.

Recognizing the tone and already narrowing his eyes in suspicion of what Kakashi might have done, he forgot the reason he was there and like hundreds of other shinobi, ignored the door and jumped out through the window.

Tsunade rolled her eyes upward and muttered, "Why don't you people ever use the door?"

Kakashi merely grinned, or at least, his one visible eye curled up, and left the Hokage alone with her newly won photos. By then, she was already thinking of the amount of money she could get selling the pictures. Of course, she was going to keep one or two. Or three.

Meanwhile, Naruto had found Sasuke sitting at the bridge where Team 7 usually met on a daily basis. Walking up to him, Naruto found Sasuke staring off into space. He had on the image of a man traumatized and desperately trying to forget something. Skin paler than normal, Sasuke snapped out of his trance when Naruto stood in front of him.

In that odd little position of face to crotch.

But we shall refrain from describing.

Puzzled by his friend's demeanor, Naruto cocked his head in confusion and commenced the poking method.

You know what we speak of, the one where you poke, poke, poke at your friend and repeatedly ask them over and over and over again, in the midst of all the poking, what was wrong.

Used to the poking method, almost immune, you could say, Sasuke merely Looked at Naruto. For several minutes this exchange was... exchanged...?

A poke and a question from Naruto and a Look from Sasuke.

Eventually, the Look prevailed.

Giving up, Naruto merely flopped down next to the brooding boy and laid on his back.

"Ne, Sasuke?"

"Hmm?"

"Kakashi-sensei said you were looking for me."

Seemingly for no reason, a bright red blush flared up on the boy's cheek. A vast and noticeable difference from the pale whiteness of moments before.

"Eh? Sasuke?"

"Ah, it's nothing, don't worry about it."

Being the carefree boy he was, Naruto shrugged it off and concentrated on the clouds floating above.

"It's a nice day, isn't it?" A quiet murmur from Naruto broke the silence.

"Aa."

A simple answer, but one that spoke levels of contentment.

After the last few days of semi-chaos, this stolen moment was, to them, absolute heaven. With the presence of the other boy beside them, the feeling was amplified.

It just so happened that it was also a worldwide squirrel holiday, so even the squirrels remained quiet, allowing the birds to chirp quietly and soothingly.

There was a melody dancing across the grass of the field, a swish of the leaves on the nearby trees. The silent journey of the clouds across the blue, blue skies. A quiet, rhythmic breathing that steadily slowed and slowed.

For a moment, it seemed that the world just slowed down. Lagging to match the rhythms of the breaths, following the movements of a simple teenaged boy.

A cool breeze ruffled the blond hair, the black hair, the simple clothes that were worn by the two.

A propped up arm allowed the older of the pair to look down upon the sleeping boy. An innocent looking child in his sleep, but a loud and boisterous one in life. The flickering of the eyelids enchanted the boy, showing him that the dream realm had fallen with the other.

Raising his other hand, he brushed it against the soft cheek, decorated by the three whisker marks that had been forever on his face.

Sasuke smiled softly as Naruto raised a hand to pat away the offending limb. Turning on his stomach, Sasuke settled down to continue to watch the slumbering boy.

But as Murphy's Law states, anything that can go wrong, will. And so, the peaceful moment was shattered by a soft sigh.

It was not something that would normally bother people, it was a rather insignificant sound. Something that could have been passed off as the wind blowing. For Sasuke, it was something that shattered the atmosphere around the two boys.

Sighing at the past few weeks, he shook Naruto awake.

At least, he tried to.

For moments later, the onlooker, realizing that it was all ruined, decided to enter the area fully.

And although she felt rather sorry for them, she was unable to contain her glee and proceeded to jump them. Followed by several other fan girls that were lurking in the backgrounds.

Thus, with Naruto finally awake, the two boys ran in separate directions.

-

The events that had happened days before were close to being traumatizing to the two boys. But they both refused to think any deeper about it. Not while they were awake anyway.

So today was the day when the two met up again. It struck them weird how things were turning out. One would've thought that with the discovery of their 'new relationship', they would see each other more. But they didn't.

But everything was to change now.

"We need to do something about this."

"Gee, you think?"

"There's no need to get sarcastic."

Glances were traded, slight blushes appeared before Sasuke spoke again.

"I have the perfect way to get back at them."

And Naruto immediately perked up.

For the next few hours, Sasuke explained his plan for revenge. To which Naruto hesitated upon listening, but after some urging by his subconscious, agreed fully.

Four days after that, Naruto opened the door to Sasuke's house as the door bell rang half-naked.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1) **Just for a moment pretend Team 8 is Gai's team. Writing Gai's team in that sentence would be crappy-like 

**La/-/er-** :sigh: I'm so terribly sorry. It's late and it's barely 5 pages. Totally crappy. I think the review responses are longer and I said I wouldn't do that. But I began this on Monday and I couldn't finish because there was something going on with my computer. And the last two days, I haven't been feeling very well. And then this week, we finally have normal class times, so schoolwork and a mountain amount of homework slowed me down. I was doing homework for 4 hours yesterday!

Right now the health thing is not too bad, but with the way my brain is functioning, it's imperative that I start with a new chapter. So I deeply apologize for this chapter, but with some effort the next one will come on Thursday. Er... that's tomorrow, never mind, Friday. Definitely. I apologize once again and I will work hard on the next chapter. So if you do read this chapter and think, 'Well, this wasn't that great', come back in a few days and a good one will be up. Or at least the best I can do at this time. Thank you for reading :bows: Love ya all!

**But as a bonus, I wrote the parts I didn't put in, both of them. They didn't exactly fit in the chapter, so I wrote it here. So I suppose it's not that bad, lol. Read on! **And one more thing, these two stories did actually happen during the process of the two boys talking to their mentors. It just didn't seem to fit in the actual chapter is all.

* * *

**Bonus #1 Iruka and His Teachings**

**A.K.A. Iruka getting depressed by a certain someone's words from the Chuunin Exam (Alright, maybe not _depressed_ but not very confident)**

Naruto had traipsed all the way over to the Academy in order to talk to Iruka. From his house to the Academy, it was... a long distance. On his way there, several close calls had made Naruto become paranoid. There was a niggling thought that everything was being blown way out of proportion. There was no way possible that there would be fan girls, or fan boys, at every turn. No way possible that everyone would care so much. The two boys may have been popular on their own, but this did not mean that their "relationship" would have. Really, how many people in this world would actually support a same-sex relationship? Certainly not enough to have this many in this small village.

There was a feeling that there was something... or some_one_ behind it all. If only Naruto was able to find them.

Of course, he never will since... well, I think it's obvious why.

A glance upwards and around showed nothing out of the ordinary, except Naruto kept on hearing clickety-clack noises. Something like fingernails tapping against something, maybe plastic?

But before he could ponder on, he reached the Academy that had let out only minutes before. Knowing that Iruka would still be in his classroom- sometimes, Naruto thought that Iruka had no life outside of school- he walked directly there. All the while not noticing that eyes were watching his every movement. Souls anticipating every step of the way. The hungry minds of perverted humans waiting to see what would befall on the boy in the next few moments.

They were not disappointed.

Stepping into the classroom, Naruto's eyes immediately zeroed in on the hunching figure over a desk. Quietly tiptoeing across, making no more noise than a breeze, he stalked towards Iruka.

Opening his mouth, he prepared to scare the crap out of his former teacher.

But before he could do so, his former teacher scared the crap out of him when he said, "I know you're there and you make too much noise."

Gasping for breath, trying to calm his heart - it appeared he was getting too relaxed with his surroundings- Naruto squeezed out a few words.

"Iruka-sensei! Don't do that!"

Laughing, Iruka turned his seat to face Naruto, "I see you finally decided to visit me."

Naruto sheepishly nodded, just now realizing that since the rumor began almost a month ago, he had yet to talk about the issue with his mentor.

Ready to spill out all that had happened, he was stopped by the amused glint in Iruka's eyes.

"Er, Iruka-sensei?"

Teasingly, Iruka spoke, "So, Naruto, how's life now that you're officially dating Sasuke?"

He ended with a gut laugh, showing that really, he was very amused by the things he had heard.

Believing that this meant Iruka did **not** believe in the rumors that had been floating around, Naruto gave a large grin.

"Iruka-sensei! This means that you don't really believe the rumors, right?" Naruto asked the man eagerly, anticipating an answer that would lift his spirits up.

It seemed Naruto never saw it coming as Iruka's face immediately sobered, donning on the look that indicated a lecture was coming.

"Naruto! You aren't still denying your relationship with Sasuke are you? I know that there will be problems between the two of you and the rest of the world, but there is no reason to deny something like love. You have to take responsibility for that which you have started. All these years, haven't you learned what I've been trying to teach?"

Naruto blinked at him, what was he saying?

"Besides teaching you to become the best shinobi you can be, I've also been trying to teach you what it means to be a good person."

Iruka sighed, his expression turning fatigued, "If you haven't learned anything from what I've taught, maybe I'm not meant to be a teacher."

At this, Naruto's eyes widened. He had come here to talk about his "relationship" problems; he wasn't here to make Iruka doubt himself! Ever since the Chuunin Exams, it seemed to be happening more and more often. Naruto worried about him, Iruka was the greatest teacher he ever had and someone or something caused him to doubt himself. He had a feeling it was someone, and if he ever found out...

He was shaken out of his thoughts when Iruka spoke, "Do you understand Naruto? You--"

"I understand." He understood alright, it was too bad it didn't really fit the situation. At his words, Iruka brightened up and the twinkle in his eyes returned.

"Great! Now..."

Feeling the approach of doom, Naruto hurriedly stammered out something about visiting the Hokage and swiftly left.

Leaving Iruka to watch him exit with a sad smile on his face.

**Owari**

**

* * *

**

**Bonus #2 Kakashi and his book**

**A.K.A. Sasuke gets a pervert lesson**

While Naruto had went off to speak to his first teacher, Sasuke went off to speak to his current one. He was never very close to any of his Academy teachers and Kakashi was a sensible person, usually. Thinking about it more, Sasuke started to get worried. Maybe going to Kakashi wasn't the best thing to do? But he had no one else to go to...

Before he could contemplate any more, he arrived at the bridge where he had asked Kakashi to meet him. Quite intelligently, he asked him to come 2 hours earlier than the actual time. Thus, in truth, when Kakashi arrived, he arrived right on the dot that Sasuke anticipated.

Preferring to remain silent, Kakashi watched Sasuke approach. Waiting for him to speak, he started to take out his accompanying book.

"Ah... if it's okay, I'd rather you not take that out."

Kakashi's eye rose as he perked up his eyebrows in interest. No one had ever directly **asked** him not to read it. _This should prove to be interesting_, was what he thought.

Not waiting for any further response besides Kakashi putting the book away, Sasuke immediately plowed into his speech, rambling on and on, quite unlike himself, about the details of the last month. He described how he never seemed to be alone, impossible situations turning completely possible. Strangely, each time after Sasuke had heard some weird clickety-clack sounds.

:cough cough:

Kakashi listened to the words that were running out of the boy's mouth. Well, he seemed to be, but then again he looked like he was looking at that squirrel crawling up that tree over there carrying something very interesti--

"Ahem, Kakashi-sensei?"

Seemingly running out of things to say and returning back to normal, a bit, Sasuke tried to get his teacher's attention; the teacher who was supposed to be trying to **help** him, not stare at the squirrel that was carrying a map!

Unfortunately the dastardly plans of the squirrels remained unknown as Kakashi spoke at that moment. Even though there was truly no dastardly plans to be carried out as it had already been mentioned that it was a worldwide squirrel holiday.

"Ah, I think I know how to help you, Sasuke."

There was a slight brightening of Sasuke's features before he returned to his normal sullen face.

"Really? And how is that?"

Without any words, without any warning, Kakashi slammed a hand down on Sasuke's shoulder, causing him to sit down, rather hard. Crouching next to him, Kakashi whipped out the infamous book of Icha Icha Paradise. And then... he opened the book and began to read.

As he read, Sasuke became more and more interested, leaning over to Kakashi to read ahead.

The tale that Kakashi wove was one of romance, adventure, action, and... hentai.

With all the elements of a good romance novel and all the elements of a hentai novel, it created the combination of a tale that would entrance and arouse at the same time.

And with Kakashi pointing out specific parts that could be "experimented on Naruto and yourself if you feel like it" Sasuke turned interesting shades of white and red.

There were sections of twisting body parts, moans and groans, breathy gasps and guttural sounds that spoke of eons of pleasure. Sections that described the twisting and the pulling and the pushing and the noises of skin against skin, the swipe of a tongue across expanses of skin..

Suddenly, everything seemed to get hot.

Finally, Kakashi neared the end of the book. Unfortunately for Sasuke, the last scene was that of a bondage sex session between the two main characters. Nothing too extreme, but enough to make the virgin 16 year-old to get caught between feeling mortified and... satisfied.

Evidently, he chose mortified and traumatized as Kakashi concluded the tale and turned to question Sasuke, but received no response.

Chuckling at the reaction, Kakashi rose to leave the place.

"Ah, youth."

**Owari**

**

* * *

**

**La/-/er-** Whee! With the bonuses, this became normal length, cheer! Sorry once again about the issues with this chapter, hopefully I can get better enough to write a good chapter. **Review!**

Written: 9/19/04 (12-3) 9/20/04 (6-10) 9/22/04 (6-9:29)

_Edited: 11/15/04_

Re-edited: 4/27/05


	6. The Plan Begins

**Disclaimer:** Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er-** That's it, I'm never giving myself a deadline ever again. Except for the within two weeks thing. Not that I followed it this time... Oh well, here we go, the part you've all been waiting for! (hopefully, that is).

**Warning:** (Just in case) There's like a curse in here, so erm.. avert your eyes? Although if you manage to read the things that come before the curse rather calmly, I don't think you would mind very much, lol.

**Review Responses:** (No, I still don't have a life, but I'm in a hurry, so no organizing)

**_Seito-_** A squirrel that is trying to take over the world carries a map. I liked the part where Naruto goes to Iruka for advice too. And you should never give up writing to read my stuff. Because then I wouldn't be able to write either.

**_Dark Mimiru-Chan-_** Definitely.

**_RukaIayLomperGay-_** Your reviews get weirder and weirder each time... but yes squirrels rock.

**_ghostninja85_**- Evil? Why? I'm not evil... Yes, you should go bother Seito. And it wasn't soon, but here it is.

**_foxylittlechibi-_** Aw, glad you thought it was worth the wait. And weirdly, I felt better soon after I posted the last chapter... Not so soon.. but yeah. (And I'm really cool, so cool, my fingers are stiff and I can't type good)

**Dearest-**Thanks for the info! A tiny repeat, but otherwise, thanks very muchly. And I hope you will continue to the very end.

**_Nuppu_**- The bonus were originally supposed to part of it, technically it still is, but when I started writing the chapter, writing out what happened between the students and the teachers didn't flow right. It actually happened in the story though, if that's what you meant. It just wasn't written together, that's all.

**_Aimi-chan-_** :grin: I thought people would like that part. And the K/G thing... you should try writing it, yes. It's kinda hard to think up of a plot for a long story for that series. And there is much action between Sasuke and Naruto. I think

**_Night-Owl123-_** Thankies muchly. And well.. erm, here's your update.

**_izumi-_** Haha, you shall find out today. And the worldwide squirrel holiday occurs any random day, particularly when I say so, lol.

**_lady of the myst-_** Wouldn't it? All yaoi...

_**No Name ANBU-** _So glad you laughed so much. And feel free to horrify your friend as much as you want with this.

**_froggykappa-_**Hehe, happy you enjoyed this, and I feel the same as you. A day without yaoi seems like it's missing something.

**Vin-** Really? KakaIru with almost the same plot? Where! Where! Here's your update and if you really love me, you will tell me the title of what you're talking about.

**Argent-** I'm glad you thought so, lol. Haha, so good you can hug yourself? Actually, I'm rather glad to know that some people do that... other than me that is. Hehe, more action is in here!

**_AnimeFreakPerson-_** Yup, the bonuses were my best work:tear: Let's choose a worldwide squirrel holiday day, eh?

**_The Sisters of Choas:W/D-_** Whoa, whoa, calm down, breathe. And you don't need to beg me, I'll keep writing till this is done, even if I do get distracted at times.

**_Shiomi-_** I thought it was rather ingenius to write the bonuses. And if you thought it was too short... well, this chapter is longer. Muchly. And SasuNaru action in here too!

**_Sora Kohaku-_** Ecstatic that you loved everything. :huggles:

**_Spooy-_** Yay, it's you again! Lol. I agree with everything you said. Agree so much that I have nothing else to say...

**_SukiAme-_** Ahh! It's you. The weird thing is, when I first saw your review, I was all "Hmm... this penname looks so familiar, I wonder why?" And then I got so happy by what you wrote. When I finished reading, I turned to my friend (I was in school) and said that this was such a cool review. And then I turned back and I was all O.O it's SukiAme! Yes, so thanks **so** much for the review. It was wonderful. So wonderful that like from the previous review, I have nothing to say:huggles muchly: (Really, it's more like I have so much to say, that I think it's just better to say nothing at all. Just know that I love you, lol)

**_Yuen-chan-_** The poking method is rather wonderful. We now have two votes, one for all yaoi and one for the original. Kiba/Hinata is a good pairing, ne?

**_PuNkRoCkBuNnY182-_** :grins right back at you:

**Thanks everybody for the reviews! And apologies for any typos.**

**

* * *

**

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter VI --- The La/-/er

**_The Plan Begins_**

It had started out as quite an ordinary day.

Is what most stories would start out with.

But having already established that this story is quite unlike any other, we can correctly assume that even as the sun rose, the day was not normal. There seemed to be a forbidding aura settling over the town; for every step that was taken, something went wrong. Usually, it was something small and simple: price tags were labeled wrong, one or two out of many foods went rotten, a misplaced item here and there. In other cases, clothes were found ripped in such a way that it was irreparable and bushels of food disappeared into thin air.

Originally thinking it was a prank (after Uzumaki Naruto, the pranksters seemed to have gotten more courageous) the store owners set up several subtle traps. However, after finding only their own clerks in the traps several times, those superstitious store owners immediately closed up shop. These numbered few and thus, streets returned to their activity, determined to put the coincidences out of their minds.

What exactly was so coincidental, you ask?

Oh it's quite simple, when we said, "for every step that was taken, something went wrong", it just so happened that each step was taken by someone who had a part in spreading a certain... "fact". For such an intelligent town, they seemed adamant in denying things that were shoved in their faces, but no matter, we are here to concentrate on certain individuals for the day. We shall leave the town on its own for now, to be run over by squirrels intent on... Our apologies, we shall return to our original story.

So our main characters for the day included a certain group of triplets. No, not as in three identical people, just simply a group of three.

It had been several weeks from that oh-so-fateful day when Ino had been "dragged" over to Naruto's house at Kiba's insistence. Of course, as we all know, it was more like the other way around, but it is not an important fact as it does not help us in the telling of our story. So we shall stop stalling and tell you.

Any moment now.

Getting ready...

Alright, so it had been several weeks, and in the eyes of the three girls present, several frustrating weeks. Autumn had nearly set and by this time, the girls grew impatient, but as they grew impatient, they also pondered more. They pondered, they wondered, they thought, and they argued. For the past few days, they had done this. Ever since the hour of the stolen pictures and since they had seen that "accidental kiss", they had contemplated.

'Perhaps they weren't lying.'

The thought that was running through their minds, a question that had been asked since they had seen the picture of that kiss. The girls were not stupid, they saw the expressions on the boys' faces. Besides, Sakura was actually there when it happened, they had an eyewitness account. And what they saw did not match their original presumptions.

It was quite unfortunate (for them) that they had not realized this sooner. Preferably weeks ago, or even at the beginning. Even if they did realize **at least** 3 days earlier, everything would've been okay again. Or close to it. Thankfully, they didn't realize it anytime sooner. After all, if they did... we wouldn't have a story!

What they had seen of the boys individually, they applied to their thoughts of how their relationship would be. Naruto was quite obviously an active boy, a loud, obnoxious, selfless, sweet boy, who would not be the type to blush and look surprised to find himself enjoying a kiss if he was kissing a boy he had supposedly been dating for weeks. Sasuke was a quiet boy, but a passionate one, as they had seen from his initial pre-teen years of wanting revenge for what his brother had done. Even then he was a boy who spoke little, but who had eyes that was lit by a fiery ice which burned yet froze at will. Their original relationship, one of rivalry was a violate one.

Smack those two together in a relationship where emotions were taken to even higher levels for a few weeks, especially at the peak of their puberty, you were bound to have a rather emotional and physical relationship.

One that would involve a **lot** more than kissing.

As Ino had suspected originally.

However, since that day, seeing the reactions on the two boys' face during that accidental kiss, doubts began to enter their minds and on this day, they decided to finally get together and talk.

And so, they talked. Sakura started the conversation, a rather curious look on her face. A look of uncertainty and a faltering stand.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm starting to wonder..." She trailed off, unwillingly to continue the thought that she was wrong. After all that she had done too.

Hinata continued. Unlike the others, she had done less, merely standing in the background, concentrating on supporting her friend. She seemed to have forgotten that she was the president of Naruto's fan club, and thus had much control over the rumors concerning him. "There is a rather strong possibility that we were wrong. We had asked the two of them and they continued to deny over and over again that they were dating. We should have believed them when they continued to support what they said for so long."

Ino, being Ino, vehemently replied, "But we can't be totally blamed! There was an equally strong possibility that they weren't telling the truth." She had a slight unwillingness to admit they weren't dating because that meant that **she** was wrong. She had started it all too, so that meant that everything was all her fault. Quite frankly, she didn't want to have that burden. **Especially** not when it involved Naruto and Sasuke. She shuddered to think what they would do to her...

Not knowing that they were already planning it all...

Suddenly, Sakura spoke, "What if we asked Gaara?"

"About?"

"Well, didn't Sasuke-kun say that he dated him recently?" Sakura looked at the others, "It's the only way left to get the truth."

It was really more like a month ago since that day of the meeting; a lot of time had passed. In which Sasuke and Naruto learned what it was like to have a fan club. The true meaning that it hid deep within the members, a monster rarely let out except in times like these. On the surface, they cared deeply about their idol, beneath it lied a monster whose interest laid deeper than simple care, it delved into the realm of possessiveness and obsessiveness. It lurked underneath the underneath, just waiting to come out...

Or so it seemed anyway.

"We don't know where he is though." Hinata interjected with a hopeful look on her face, despite her words.

Wanting to find out the truth quickly, Ino said, "Well then, we'll just have to find out, won't we?"

And so the three girls, determined to find the truth once and for all, set out to find Gaara.

----------

Several hours later, they returned to the field exhausted, sweaty, hungry and a bit... smelly. Needless to say, after a glance at their faces, nothing was solved, nothing was found and most importantly, the truth remained hidden.

They had went to the Hokage to see if she, by any chance, had any information regarding Gaara and his two siblings. It was a fruitless interrogation as Tsunade had not known their whereabouts since a month or so ago. The girls found this interesting, but refrained from saying anything. Next, they had a speed-message sent to a few nearby villages where they had their own contacts, made from years of being a shinobi who traveled much. They also did not find anything from there.

As a last attempt, they went off themselves as far as they could, as fast as they could. Separating to cover as much ground as possible, and using any clues that they could find, all they were led to in the end was absolutely nothing.

In reality, it was Hinata and Ino who had went off and covered as much ground as they possibly could in such a short time as their attempt to find Gaara. Sakura, the devious girl she was, went off to wander the streets. Walking from town to town in a relaxed state, she stopped mere minutes before the time of their return to spread a little dust and a little dirt on her clothes. It wouldn't be good to go back looking neatly when she was supposed to be off desperately trying to find Gaara.

Not to say she knew where he was, oh no, she was in the dark just as much as all the other people were. It was simply that she already knew the truth, there was no reason to search for the boy when she knew if he didn't want to be found, he wouldn't be found. She simply knew the truth, she'd known for some time, she just decided to... shield that fact from the rest of the town.

Sakura was an intelligent girl, she knew there was no way possible the two boys would have sex at the time Ino said they had. They weren't at that stage, not yet. She wasn't the smartest girl in town for no reason. She may not have had great physical strength, but her strategies, her quick mind, her sharp eyes, they were all she needed to survive. They were all she needed in order to see what she had seen; all she needed to realize the truth that had hurt her, but gave her strength as well. If they were to be able to survive as they needed to, they would need her and she wanted to be there for the. Years of being on the same team didn't mean nothing to her, it meant everything. And it was because of that everything that she was doing what she was, did what she had. It was, after all, she who had--

Her thoughts were cut off, interrupted by the arrival of the other two girls. Knowing that they had not found anything, she also quickly adopted a look of exhaustion and spoke with them.

A little while later, they had decided to give up. Gaara and his siblings were nowhere in the vicinity in Konoha. Although considering he had left what seemed to be soon after his "supposed break-up with Sasuke-kun", he could have been anywhere by now. Gathering together, this was what the three girls had found and in their exhaustion, they did the only thing they could think off. They went straight to the source.

They went to Sasuke's house.

----------

Too tired to sprint, the girls leisurely walked to the home which Sasuke had lived in for most of his life. All the way there, they continued to talk.

"What should we do if Sasuke-kun tells us the same thing he's always been telling us?" Hinata asked, cocking her head in a curious manner, "After all, wouldn't it seem weird if we suddenly accepted his words after so long of saying he was in denial?"

Sakura nodded her head along slowly, "There is that, but I think that as long as we don't overdo it, he'll just be glad that we believe him. Even he knows that if we believe him, sooner or later, the rumor would disappear and most likely he and Naruto-kun would be left alone." Shrugging her shoulders, she continued speaking in a relaxed tone that was not expected from her at this time, "Besides, there's always the chance that he had been lying from the start and decide to tell us that. You never know, he might've decided to stop with the facade."

She ended with a smile, one dangerously leading to what could be named as a smirk. The other girls, too tired to concentrate on anything other than the road never noticed. Perhaps if they did, they might have ganged up and pushed the situation further. But the chance was lost and the situation was settled and they had finally arrived at Sasuke's house.

With Inner Sakura silently cheering her on and grinning that grin that spoke of mischievous evil, Sakura lifted an arm, lifted a hand, and pressed her finger against the doorbell.

Moments later, the door opened to reveal Naruto.

There was a blink here and there, a caught gasp in someone's throat, before a squeak... squeaked out.

"Um... Na-Naruto-kun?"

Now, don't be thinking anything extreme, Naruto didn't open the door with only a towel on or anything. But our poor, dear girls, the virgins that they truly are (or at least are said to be), didn't exactly expect the boy to show up at the door wearing only a t-shirt.

And when we say only a t-shirt, we mean **only** a t-shirt.

Thankfully- for our hot-blooded girls- the t-shirt did cover his bottom. It covered it, but only barely; the edge of the t-shirt skimming a little less than mid-thigh. Showing quite clearly that there were no boxers and not quite as clearly, but quite obviously, there were definitely no briefs. Showing also quite obviously the lean muscular legs that came from years of training as a shinobi. Strong, tanned legs that just made you wanna moan. Ahem, not that we would know why you would want to. Really, they're just legs, nice long type of legs that you could imagine being wrapped around another person in an erotic position that made you feel...

Erm... yes.

Anyway, it just so happened that a little breeze blew by, and-

"Naruto? Who's at the door?" A deep voice spoke calmly and huskily, coming from behind Naruto, and from inside the house, the voice sent shivers down the girl's spines. The voice that they heard, the tone; it was all something they've never heard from this person because they **did** know who said it.

Fingers twitched when the three girls' eyes traveled from crotch level to above shoulders. Coming from behind, a dark head appeared, arms sliding around the boy's stomach to cross fingers and trail pinkies.

Up and down, up and down, swhoop, swhoop, inching, inching, sliding, sliding down and down. Hands following pinkies and trailing lower and lower, reaching the hem of the shirt and...

The hands retreated back into their original positions before an amused voice spoke.

"Is there anything we can do for you, Sakura-chan, Hinata-chan and Ino-chan?" A gasp ended his sentence, and searching eyes saw what had caused it. Sasuke was slowly, sensually dragging his lips over the tanned expanse of Naruto's neck. Minutely caressing the skin with his tongue, leaving trails of wetness which he blew on, causing the blond boy to shudder in ecstasy.

The three girls stood at the door, entranced with the sight in front of them; it was extreme, it was erotic, it was so fucking hot. Dazed expressions crossed their faces, eyes clouding, they were (quite rudely) jerked out of their fantasies by a very non-discreet cough.

Still caught in the web they were trapped in, the girls were startled and took several moments to claw out of their daze, stuttering in a futile attempt to generate some sort of response.

"A-ano, eto... erm, uh..." The girls were unable to form any type of coherent communication and so in a desperate attempt to say something, blurted out the last thing they ever really wanted to say.

"I don't suppose you'll let us come in and watch?"

Mortified, Hinata- of all people- covered her mouth and blushed hard.

"Th-that was **not** what I wanted to say..." She trailed off, seeing the smug looks cross the boys' features.

Beside her, Sakura was slowly crawling out of her state, forcing the urge to squeal deep down where it was not to be seen for some time. Forming words, but emitting no sounds, she was ignored.

On the other hand, Ino was looking quite smug. Even more than the boys; a smirk slowly grew, spreading and taking over her face until it resembled that of Ursula in The Little Mermaid (tm) when she successfully snatched the trident from the king. Needless to say, it was quite unbecoming, but soon, when Sasuke and Naruto did not respond, merely stood at the door looking and looking, she faltered and wondered.

Realizing that they had yet to speak, Sakura finally escaped the depths of the hole she fell into and replied to the question asked some time ago.

"We were going to ask you a question concerning the rumors... but it's already been answered." Ending her sentence, she mentally rolled her eyes at the absurdity of that statement. She couldn't think of anything better to say?

A slow smile crept onto Naruto's face as Sasuke returned to his previous actions. Blood rushing abruptly to their faces, Ino- quite smoothly, we should add- declared their finished business at his house and swiftly left the premises.

Or at least, tried to.

For when Ino spoke her words, Sasuke stepped out from behind Naruto, revealing that while Naruto wore no pants, he wore no shirt. Seeing as how the designs on both shirt and pants were similar, it was quickly deducted that they were wearing clothes from the same outfit. This observation led to rather... curious thoughts and thus Ino stalled, losing her original thought process.

Smoothly, Sasuke swept an arm into his house and said, "Are you sure you don't want to come in for a bit? You guys look a little tired."

Deciding that it would be rude to decline such an offer, Hinata took charge and accepted his invitation.

----------

Fully stepping into the house, they were met with a hallway that branched off shortly into what seemed to be the kitchen and then the living room. Leading the girls to the living room, Sasuke moved quickly to serve them drinks before excusing both himself and Naruto to "wear more appropriate clothing".

Walking up a set of nearby stairs and soon disappearing into a room with the closing of a door, the guests sitting in the living room glanced at each other. They had not come here expecting what they had seen.

"You did see what I just saw right? I'm not imagining things or something?" Ino looked at the other girls, receiving confirmation nods which caused her eyes to widen before retreating back to a normal size.

"I don't suppose...?"

Knowing what the other girl was thinking, Sakura shook her head, "There's no way possible that the two of them would be able to do this just to trick us. If they weren't dating, they might've been mad at us for putting them through what they did. But not enough to do..." Unwilling to revive the memories of the past few minutes, Sakura continued at a different place, "Sasuke-kun and Naruto-kun are not the type of people to fool us this way. They're just... not."

She ended her argument weakly, not knowing whether she should believe herself or not. However, Hinata was quite sure and she also shook her head and said, "Naruto-kun would not do something like this unless he truly had feelings for Sasuke-kun. And if he did, Naruto-kun would not be the type of person to do this only after this.. scandal. He would've realized it in the beginning and told Sasuke-kun. He's not the type to hide these kind of feelings within himself, maybe other issues, but not something like this."

Sighing, the other two girls nodded along, finding sense in what Hinata said. They knew Naruto was a courageous person, over the years he had only proved that time and time again. He wouldn't hide it from himself if he knew that he liked Sasuke and he wouldn't hide it from Sasuke. And since this was the case, it would go against all reason that he would only realize it now. The girls saw their interactions in the past, and if that was not enough to tell them that they had a connection even then, they would never realize it.

Which showed how much they knew Naruto, seeing as Naruto indeed did not know that he liked Sasuke (because we all know he does even if he doesn't). So their whole idea swapping in the last few moments proved to be absolutely wrong. In which case you can immediately forget the words that had been displayed as we are not even sure if they make any sense.

Meanwhile, in the floor above them, Sasuke and Naruto attempted to find clothes to wear. Attempted because ever since Naruto had moved in a few days before, the whole room was a mess in an attempt to make it seem as if Naruto had stayed there before and for some time.

Digging through piles of crap, Naruto managed to find a pair of pants, but no underwear. Grimacing slightly, but shrugging it off moments later, he slid the pants on, hoping desperately that they were his pants. Sasuke, on the other hand, seeing that Naruto wore a pair of pants, wrenched his shirt off before wearing it himself. Pointedly ignoring Naruto's glare, he searched in his closet for a while before coming out with another shirt.

"Here, wear this." Sasuke tossed the shirt towards Naruto, revealing with such an action that the pants Naruto wore... were totally his.

Silently cursing himself, Naruto dragged the shirt over his head, allowing Sasuke a peaceful moment of staring at his "boyfriend" without interruptions. Swiftly walking towards the door as the shirt was pulled down, disclosing a smirk that was not seen by Sasuke as he had turned around, he opened the door and beckoned Naruto to follow.

Fuming at his expected obedience, Naruto nevertheless did so, but not without getting back at the other.

He pounced at the boy, hanging off his back, crossing his legs around Sasuke's waist and curled his arms around his neck.

"Ne, Sasuke, carry me!"

With such a loud statement, the girls in the living room turned their heads and up the stairs to see the scene.

And what a cute scene it was.

Naruto, with a huge grin hung off of Sasuke while Sasuke smiled endearingly at the blond boy.

Before abruptly dropping Naruto on his ass.

In trying to retaliate, Naruto tackled Sasuke, forgetting that they stood a mere few feet away from the stairs, leading the two to tumble down them. Rolling to a stop a little away from the couches where the girls sat, Naruto laid on top of Sasuke, before propping himself up to look down at him.

From a moment there was laughter and joy, before slowly it all faded away as blue eyes gazed into black ones. An intense gaze was held in Naruto's eyes as he looked into what everyone called the windows to the soul. He looked deep into them, saw the joy, saw the content, saw the torrent of emotions being tossed around in Sasuke's eyes and soul. Peering quietly into his eyes, never noticing that Sasuke was doing the same.

But in his eyes, he saw more than the happiness, the pure feeling of being. He saw the pain, the loneliness, he saw the five year-old crouching by the tree, lying alone in a field.

Slowly, never realizing, the two gravitated towards each other, the comforting weight on top of Sasuke, the warm arms wrapped around Naruto, slowly, painstakingly slowly, lips met in attempt to connect. To feel all that the other could feel, to be what the other was.

Soft lips brushed, cold lips brushed before they warmed to press against each other. A slight parting of the mouth, a peek of a tongue, a sweep across the lower lip and a entrance created. Delving into the warm opening, Naruto's tongue met Sasuke's, a caress of the most intimate kind and a moan broke out and they tentatively reached deeper into each other.

Desire fueling the kiss, they ignored all else, trying to feel all, taste all. Hands roamed up the shirt, down the pants, arms tightened as they tried to get closer and closer together.

Tongues retreated and the two merely rested their mouths against each other, feeling their presence, feeling the warmth, feeling the heartbeat. Naruto brought his head back up and gazed at Sasuke once again, seemingly lost. He brought his head down to kiss his lips once again; feeling, tasting, being only with him.

It was a moment of connection, a moment of learning and the moment was shattered as one of the girls sighed in contentment.

Abruptly, the two boys seemed to realize where they were, with whom they were with and the two shot away from each other, expressions of horror crossing their faces for a split second.

Apparently, it was a split second too much as all three girls saw the look and were startled by what that meant. It was an observation filed into the appropriate slot of their brains to be examined later as the two boys seemed to have realized their mistake and just as quickly moved back together in the position that they were first in when they had opened the door.

The girls' suspicions rose as they saw this and needing time to think and perhaps plan, they rapidly excused themselves.

"So sorry to bother you guys, but I just realized that I need to go back to the shop. 'Kaa-san wants me to take over for a little while. Maybe I'll see you guys later?" One excuse was given and then another was presented.

"I forgot I had to do some shopping, I need to go as well."

Hinata spoke last, the only one out of the three telling the truth, "I need to talk to the fan club about the new vice-president, I should go as well."

Sasuke and Naruto both nodded, carefully showing curious faces to show that they didn't understand why they had came and then left so suddenly. Nevertheless, the two showed the girls out the door, watching as they left the vicinity. When their presence was felt no more, the two turned to each other.

"So, Sasuke. Good job?"

"Yeah," he smirked, "Good job."

---------

Walking back into the house, the two entered the kitchen to sit and talk some more.

"Are you sure we should've done that?" Naruto cocked his head, waiting for the question he knew would come before the answer. And he was right.

"Do what?" Pretending he did not know, Sasuke glanced at Naruto before turning to the refrigerator to prepare the night's meal. "You don't mean pretending to be boyfriends, do you?"

Naruto rolled his eyes at Sasuke's slight eccentricity. "You know very well I don't mean that. I already know about why we're doing **that**."

"So?" Smiling slightly, Sasuke pitter-pattered around the kitchen, bringing out pots and pans.

"Why are we pretending that we're horrified about kissing each other? Wouldn't that make them suspicious?"

"Oh, so you **like** us kissing each other?"

Naruto scrunched up his nose in embarrassment, "Oh, shush."

Laughing, Sasuke turned to Naruto and dropped a kiss on his cheek- having spent the last four days practicing actions like these, Naruto barely reacted- before answering his question.

"The reason why we're acting as if we **are** just **acting** as boyfriends in front of them is simple. To confuse them."

"What do you mean? How are we going to confuse them by acting like we're not boyfriends?"

"That's the beauty of it all Naruto." Sasuke smiled at him, "We weren't really boyfriends in the beginning of all this. But then we got together when we were planning our revenge. They don't know that. If we acted like we were pretending to be boyfriends as our revenge, it'll get them confused, won't it? Especially if at other times we act as lovey-dovey as we can. And when they're confused..."

"Their guard is down."

"Exactly. And when their guard is down..."

"We can carry out the rest of our revenge with no problem."

"I knew I liked you for some reason." Naruto grinned at him, glee shining out at his every word.

"And here I thought it was because I was the sexiest bastard you've ever met."

"Well, that too." And with that, Naruto pulled Sasuke down to give him a kiss.

A deep full-on kiss that let them panting moments later.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**La/-/er**- Hum, this was... different. Totally was not going this way. The last scene was **so** not in my original plans either. They weren't even supposed to get together yet either! It was supposed to happen like... a lot of chapters later. My whole story's changed. And I'm not even sure if the explanation in the last scene made sense. If it doesn't make sense, I'll see what I can do next chapter. Speaking of the next chapter, since this chapter went all different, I'm going to go back a couple of days, explain what went on and how they got together. **Or** I'll just continue and it'll come up as I go. I'll have to see.

This chapter was extra long to make up the lateness, and if you noticed, my initial paragraphs were longer, so even if the scroll bar isn't that much smaller, technically I did write more. (O.o 5,000 words...duude) Anywayz, the next chapter comes at best, the end of this week, at worst, in two weeks. Hopefully. Grr.

Written: A heck lot of days... around October 6 to October 11 2004.

Edited: 4/27/05


	7. A Step Back

**Disclaimer:** Naruto as always and forever does not belong to me. It belongs to its creator, Kishimoto Masashi, and the associated companies.

**La/-/er-** BWAHAHAHA! I live once more! (And let's ignore the fact that I still have to do two term papers and a heck lot of questions for English) Sorry for the long wait people, but I wanted to update my co-written fic first, it takes precedence over this one, I have to say. But no matter! I have updated _Without Life_ and now it's _Delicious Revenge_'s turn! (Geez, why am I so hyper?) This is when I change my penname to QianYun...

**Review Responses:** (I didn't have any time, but we've already established I'm weird, so... alphabetical order!)

**_Aimi-chan-_** Aimi-chan never responded to my e-mail... :sigh: But thanx for the review, made me all O.O so it was good. But in case something went wrong, I e-mailed you because you were my 101st reviewer, so I wanted to ask if there were anything you wanted to me add. Characters, pairings, extra ecchi scenes, other scenes, etc. etc. If you do have something, anything at all, feel free to e-mail me or leave a comment on my livejournal. Just any random entry will do. Link's in my bio if you need it.

**Angstling-** Lol, big pile of goo. That's wonderful! Heck, being a big pile of goo at school is good, makes the day go by nicely, no:laugh: Thank **you** for writing such an amusing review. I laugh each time I see it.

**_AnimeFreakPerson-_**I think a lot of people love it even if it's not going according to plan. There's a lot more SasuNaru scenes in this version... But thanx for telling me that, I was feeling a little uneasy.

**_Aurum-_** Long wait, even longer this time. And is it **really** worth it this time:sigh: Haha, yeah, it wouldn't be good to drool too much. And standing in only Sasuke's shirt at the door is like a sign of possession, who wouldn't want to do that? Well, you'll find out how they got together this chapter and the next. Read it again? Wow...

**CarzyFangirl-** I'm guessing that's supposed to be crazy... Ah! That's the best compliment ever! Ah! Ah! Thanx soooo much:bows: (And thanx especially for the comments.. hmm, they're the same thing..)

**cknoakira-** :-D I love you too! It's my life's dream to distract people from boring classes. You're the second one for the last chapter. Haha, the story twist and turns **are** great, but it's too bad I don't know them until I actually write it out. Giggle during your meetings! Unless their direly important... then you can just daydream.

**_Dark-Mimiru-Chan-_** Evil? Nah! ...they are, aren't they?

**EscagirlUK-** In reference to your other review, the sequel is called _Without Life_ but it's in another account since I'm co-writing it with Seito, it's in my favorite stories link, if you want to get there easily. Now.. for this review, The Plan (oo, capital letters) is going to get very interesting. Hot kiss... kiss... hot... yesh...

**_fanny-chan2-_** Reviewers like you make me so happy. Glad that I was able to convert you for my story. Glad you thought it was worth it to read this, continue reading and I'll continue writing! (Ah.. funny and cute... how nice..)

**_ghostninja85- _**Ah, yes, yes. Accidental kisses are fun, especially when they're not, lol. And pat yourself on the back, you're the reason why this is coming out now. Well, part of it anywayz. Nag, nag, nag, you should do that to me more often.

**_izumi-_** I always like Hinata, just not the part where she has a crush on Naruto. And I figure.. it's always the quiet ones you gotta look out for.

**_Jiro-_** Yo, you got your explicit detail, and don't worry, I'm incorporating all the ideas you gave me in there. Although I'm still not sure who I should pair Lee up with... I used to like him with Sakura, and then Gaara looked interesting, and then I got hooked on Neji... decisions, decisions.. And no, you're not an annoying brat, just a regular one, lol. And yes, yay for Hinata!

**_lady of the myst-_** Yeah, I think everyone likes this slightly better because of the extra SasuNaru. And I thought no one would get the ending because... I didn't get it. When I was writing it anyway, I always worry about no one understanding what I write. Which is the reason why my chapters are so long and yet so little happens... :sweatdrop:

**_MeanaLitaia-_** (see me squeal) :hugs you back: Thanx for the absolutely wonderful review. :too giddy to think of anything more to say:

**_Night-Owl123- _**Okay, not even close to soon, but it is ASAP, next one will come quicker though. And I love that you love reading it. ;-P

**_RuByMoOn17-_** :cough cough: Erm... more than kissing will come.. possibly...

**_Seito-_** Aw, glad you thought it was cute And it seems that my squirrel paranoia has spread! SasuNaru parts are awesome, there's more in this chapter! Haha, I would love to put W/O life on hold, but that doesn't seem really right. I did start that one first... How's chapter 9 going anyway?

**Spooy-** :blush: Sometimes I wish you don't write such nice reviews... I never know what to say... And you never replied to my e-mail, but I think I got most of what you said. Using some of the ideas, not most, but there's definitely going to some things in here with your flavor. (cuz some of you stuff can go off the deep end into a puddle of angst... so I'll rather just avoid it, sorry..)

**sweetness-** :cackle: You'll have to read on (and then some) to find out exactly what happens...

**_Ulitheal- _**Humor and love is my thing. Haha, my other life's goal is to make people do exactly what you did, this way, we can all feel embarrassed when we read this story.

**_Under the Old Oak Tree-_** Awesome penname. Very nice:pets it: Lol, glad to see I have such a fan in you. And I agree, very nice scenes, don't know where they came from, but very nice.

**Yuen-chan- **Ah-ha! A person who doesn't understand! Wait.. you do... why are you tearing you hair out? You made it clearer than I did...

(Wow.. Two pages of responses.. And if I somehow missed somebody... er, you have permission to hit me.)

* * *

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter VII --- The La/-/er

Previously on Delicious Revenge...

_"The reason why we're acting as if we are just acting as boyfriends in front of them is simple. To confuse them."_

_"What do you mean? How are we going to confuse them by acting like we're not boyfriends?"_

_"That's the beauty of it all Naruto." Sasuke smiled at him, "We weren't really boyfriends in the beginning of all this. But then we got together when we were planning our revenge. They don't know that. If we acted like we were pretending to be boyfriends as our revenge, it'll get them confused, won't it? Especially if at other times we act as lovey-dovey as we can. And when they're confused..."_

_"Their guard is down."_

_"Exactly. And when their guard is down..."_

_"We can carry out the rest of our revenge with no problem."_

_"I knew I liked you for some reason." Naruto grinned at him, glee shining out at his every word._

_"And here I thought it was because I was the sexiest bastard you've ever met."_

_"Well, that too." And with that, Naruto pulled Sasuke down to give him a kiss._

_A deep full-on kiss that let them panting moments later._

Now, while we are pretty sure that you would want us to carry on with this line of thought, our psychic mind has also detected that you would also want us to fully detail what it is exactly that happened in those four days that could've caused our dear Naruto and Sasuke to have gotten together. (Our psychic mind being your reviews. See, they **do** help!) After all, four days seem like too short a time for two rivals to get together. Ignoring all the sexual tension that we've been seeing since the sixth page of the third chapter of the first volume of the Naruto manga. It can also have said to have begun on the fourth page if you're really intense. (Not counting the chapter cover.) Or it is better known as the third episode of the anime.

Just in case you poor people can't remember, it's where the "accidental" kiss occurred. You know, with the whole Naruto hovering over Sasuke and him getting "accidentally" knocked over and onto Sasuke's lips. Whereupon they "froze" for several "seconds" with eyes wide open in "horror" before tearing away from each other in "disgust".

Ahem, now that we've gotten that straight, where were we? Oh yes. SO! Events within the four days of them being locked up in Sasuke's house- yes, actually locked up, by reasons you will see- caused some unbalances to occur. Several other characters had intruded upon our dear Sasuke's dwelling and the unbalances were further... unbalanced. Because as we all know, if you lock up two hormonally charged teenagers together for **any** length of time, _things_ will occur.

And occur they did. With some help, of course.

And now we present the part which we hope we have set you up adequately for, all four _agonizing_ days that were spent in Sasuke's house. (Meaning yes, this will be more than one chapter)

Starting with the day Naruto listened to Sasuke's oh-so-clever plan.

* * *

**_A Step Back_**

_The moments right after Sasuke informed Naruto of his plan_

Naruto stood up abruptly; the chair skittered across the floor, teetered on the edge of its back legs before it froze for a moment, then burst into movement soon after. The chair rocked back and forth from its front legs to its back legs. Then it scurried from its left back leg to the right front leg to the left front, to the right back to the right front to the... and on and on and on.

For several moments, the only noise heard was the continuous movement of the chair, quite content to rock back and forth calmly for it was always its dream to become... a rocking chair.

Yes! That is right, this dear dining room chair that resided within the... dining room of one Uchiha Sasuke had always wished to be a rocking chair. Nevermore did it want to have that soft cushion on the seat, the lack of arms, the straight four legs. No! It wanted better things! It wanted 4 slanted legs! Two on each side attached to a curved wooden piece allowing the sitter of the chair to peacefully rock to sleep, or two occupants to get ever so close to each other, the motions of the chair allowing all types of movement... The chair began to rot under the seat as it began to think erotic thoughts that chairs shouldn't have.

Which is why we are immediately stopping all narrative about the chair and continuing on.

The chair continued to rock for a few moments before coming to a stop, most amazingly, still on all four legs. As the chair had gone through its movements, it was interesting to note that the very cause of this rocking motion had flown into a flurry of motion that resembled a bit of rocking.

Hearing the words emitted from Sasuke's mouth - a pretty one, admittedly, but also really dirty - Naruto's shocked stance and then his rapid movements indicated quite clearly what he thought of his ideas.

"What! You want us to pretend to be **boyfriends**? Isn't that the exact same thing that got us into this position in the first place? And now you want us to **pretend** to be boyfriends! Oh.. wait..." Naruto paused for a moment, noticing the emphasis he had put on his own words.

"Hmm... _pretend_ to be boyfriends.." For a moment, Naruto thought of the possibilities that arose with this idea. All the times that he would be able to do things that he normally couldn't have, simply because they _weren't _boyfriends. And with this idea... Shaking his head, Naruto put a wall up against those thoughts, but when he began to stop pacing the floor - an action he had no idea when it started - he also looked up to see Sasuke's expression.

In this situation, there was only two things this could've meant. Either Sasuke has pasted on a smug expression and appeared to be preparing to call Naruto a coward... Or a lesser known possession of Sasuke, the weapon that had brought success after success to others in the world, the exact same weapon that Sasuke had developed in his young childhood years and had only recently begun to use for reasons quite obvious...

The puppy eyes.

A modified version of the puppy eyes that Sasuke had used in his childhood, it featured slightly wider than normal eyes whose deep, dark color drew in a person as soon a glance was passed in that direction. Also included in the package, a light sheen that covered the eyes, and in the right lighting, it effectively created an illusion of tears. The eyebrows above those deep abyss of eyes came together in a cute frown-type thing. Forehead rising just a bit as a result of the combination of together-eyebrows and wider eyes than normal. A slightly fuller lower lip sticking out just a teensy bit more than normal. A cutely scrunched up nose that meant he was either going to cry soon, or he was going to pout.

And then the thing that put it all together.

A hand shakily - but not too shakily, he **was**, after all, a sixteen year old Uchiha shinobi - moving up to brush _right_ underneath his eyes, applying a slight pressure as if trying prevent any tears from escaping.

All very subtle actions, any other normal person wouldn't have really noticed. But quite frankly, he lived in a town full of ninjas who noticed all the little details. And the fact that these things were so subtle was the whole reason anybody in this town ever got fooled. Because you either had to be a really, really (x10) good actor or really (x5) on the verge of crying to be able to move so subtly, as if it was not on purpose. That or if you were a girl... but even then, there _were_ such things as enemy kunoichi.

Even so, add on the fact that it was Naruto watching his best friend Uchiha Sasuke - the infamous cold-hearted bastard of a guy - it was as easy as breathing to grab him hook, line, and sinker.

Aah... but we hear some protests from the worlds. Why ever would Sasuke do such a thing like that? Our response? Think... all those hormones that have been dormant within Sasuke awoke soon after he met Naruto, and as we all know, there was no way for Sasuke to release that tension under his skin. Except for the violence that occurred and all that. But pushing all that aside, here, Sasuke is presented with a wonderful chance of a perfect revenge while getting something out of it himself. After all, if they were supposed to have been dating for months... it would only make sense that they were intimate... **really** intimate with each other.

Besides, his puppy eyes were getting rusty, all those years of angsting over his brother and his family's murder didn't exactly give him a chance to see if his version still worked. Hey, just because Sasuke didn't get the Sharingan at an early age, didn't mean that he couldn't do other things that could break through a shinobi's defense. **(1)**

Voice coming out quietly, but growing in strength - seeming to be trying to get Naruto to forget his previous actions - Sasuke spoke steadily, "I only thought that this would be a good way to get back at them. I had just spent the last **month** avoiding the girls and even some boys(!) who were chasing after me corner to corner, street to street. And to be honest, I'm sick and tired of this! This is absolutely ridiculous! It wasn't even this bad when I was alone and 'dark, mysterious, and brooding'. How the hell does this all make sense! You would expect them to be after us for being gay! This whole town is out of whack, instead of shunning us like any other **normal** town would do, what do **they** do! They accept us with 'open arms'. They chase after us to make sure we're not doing anything **good** without them knowing. What kind of a town is this! I mean, honestly, this is absolut--mmph"

Silence rang through the dining room as Naruto finally detached his lips from Sasuke's. Cheeks bright red from the excess blood, Naruto blinked a few times before straightening and smiling smugly. "Well, what do you know? Shikamaru **was** right!"

"...huh?"

There was a laugh from Naruto before an uneasy silence fell over the two teenagers once again. A sigh was heard and Naruto's voice rang once again.

"It's not that I have anything particularly against the idea." Here, Sasuke rose an eyebrow. "It just seems as if there's something... off with it. Like there's bound to be **something** that's going to go wrong... I went against my instinct once during this whole ordeal," Naruto frowned, remembering the events at the Hokage Tower, "and the result wasn't pretty. I just don't want to go through it again. Especially if in the end, the only reason is because of those people again."

"Look, I won't lie to you, there's always the chance that not everything will go as planned. Hell, it's definite that it won't even be close to exactly as I planned it to be, but don't you think that after everything this town has put us through these few weeks, they don't deserve some backlash? And if you don't even want to talk about the past weeks, what about the past years?"

He stood up in front of Naruto, the memory of the kiss fading as other, more important thoughts took hold. "You can't honestly tell me, that those first thirteen years of your life, you've really been living contently. Even for a while after you joined Team 7, _our_ team, I _know_ that you can't have been completely satisfied. The village was _important_ to you, and they did nothing but shun you. The simple fact that you're still even willing to become a future Hokage of this town means that no matter what happens, you'll still love this town as if it was your own heart. But sometimes, even your own heart needs a lesson, Naruto.

This isn't the first thing the villagers have done that has hurt you in some way. Even if you truly think that they can't be blamed for their anger, there will always be a part of you that will be bitter. You've lost so many of the best years of your life for some stupid reason and you'll always remember that. Don't you think it's better to do something about it now, while you're still capable of thinking like a kid than when you're older and have matured? Seen things in your life that you might not have seen if your childhood had been different? If the village had accepted you for who you were? Naruto..."

Sasuke broke off, feeling as if the things he said went too far. He certainly had no right to give Naruto a speech on this, it was his life and his choice, it mattered not what he thought of everything. Especially since even to this day, he still didn't know the reason for the cold looks Naruto was given in those beginning years of their partnership. **(2)**

Feeling tired for no particular reason, he sat back down before glancing at Naruto. The boy had not moved since he began to speak and currently held a somewhat dazed expression of his face.

"Go back home Naruto and think about what I said. What we do from here is entirely up to you."

The atmosphere surrounding everything had changed from the cheery if not indignant mood to a somber one that provoked the need to think deep. Always one to ignore such a mood, but never one to deny the need for some space and time, Naruto nodded to Sasuke and muttered a quiet good-bye before leaving at a languid pace.

Staring at Naruto's back as he left, Sasuke tilted his head, wondering if everything really was going to work out as he planned. Even from the beginning, as was obvious, the plan had been skewered, he had wandered off the path even further than he had anticipated.

Perhaps he shouldn't have brought up the past and left everything as lighthearted as he could. Perhaps...

Walking back home as he did that day, everything seemed a bit... weird. After several weeks of being followed by a wide array of people, the day was peaceful. Almost as if everyone was able to tell that he really wasn't feeling like dealing with them.

An uneasy feeling passed through him, giving him a feeling of foreboding, that intangible feeling as if something was wrong, but not having a reason to think so; a feeling that normally would've caused Naruto to drop everything and just stay still until it passed. However, this time he pushed on, not ignoring the feeling, but walking it out. Just this once, he wanted to know why he was feeling what he did. Just this once.

Slipping into the forest that bordered the village, he never noticed the worry eyes that followed him.

Naruto was not to be seen for another few hours. The sun was finally setting when those living in the apartment next to Naruto heard a rummaging noise, drawers being opened and closed, zippers being moved and other such noises.

The next morning, at the time when Naruto was usually heard rushing through the apartment, his neighbors heard only silence and absolute peace.

* * *

_The First Day..._

Knocking on Sasuke's door was interestingly one of the more nerve-wracking actions he had done in his life. Nervously waiting for an answer, he began shifting from foot to foot, stopping when he realized that he was Uzumaki Naruto and Uzumaki Naruto did not get nervous from something as simple as this.

Because moving into your best friend's house in order to make it seem like they were dating when he just admitted to himself that he had a crush on said best friend was an everyday thing to do.

Wandering around in the lush green forest yesterday did much to calm his mind and more. By the time he had left the forest and entered his apartment, his decision was made and now was the time that he decided to act upon it.

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted as the door opened to reveal a sleepy Sasuke.

A sleepy Sasuke that apparently slept half-naked.

On second thought, it seemed as if he slept completely naked as that little breeze that just passed by showed quite clearly that no, Sasuke was **not** wearing any type of underwear at all. For a few moments, Sasuke presented a picturesque view, the top of his (silk?) robe slipping off to reveal slender, pale shoulders and a billowing bottom that revealed a bit more than was necessary.

Stunned at the sight that his best friend made, Naruto could only hope and pray that no, it wasn't a dream.

The whimper that escaped Sasuke's lips seemed to confirm it.

Amused, Naruto regained his mobility and only then just remembered that Sasuke was not a morning person. Contrary to popular belief, Sasuke was not an early waker, he simply just got up earlier than the other people on his team. And seeing who it was that was on his team... it's quite easy to see why he would be the first person there.

First of all, there's their teacher, Hatake Kakashi, whom was notorious for his late arrivals. Then there was Haruno Sakura, whom in their beginning years spent an extra few moments (hours) to make sure she was as pretty as possible for her dear, dear Sasuke. And lastly, there was Uzumaki Naruto. Yeah, no need to discuss him.

So it wasn't hard to hide the fact that Sasuke didn't like mornings.

He **really** didn't like mornings...

"Naruto-kun?"

Interestingly, the chuckles that always popped up whenever this happened seemed to have had disappeared this time. What was left was the insane urge to glomp Sasuke until he came out of his morning... daze, one could call it. That was the reason why Sasuke didn't like mornings, apparently, the emotions and such stuff that he compressed during the day (during his younger years) all escaped in the wee early mornings. For many, _many_ years, no one in the town knew of this. Until that is, that fateful day when Naruto actually woke up early and decided to bug Sasuke. All he got was an emotional Sasuke that seemed to be so freaking adorably cute.

But that's another story for another time.

Meanwhile, Sasuke had reverted to look pleadingly at Naruto, hands reaching down to pull his sleeves back up, a slight shiver running through his body. "If you're going to come in, can you do it now?" A whining tone entered his voice and yet again Naruto was struck with that peculiar feeling...

Shaking off the thought - a little too hard as he became dizzy and unable to focus for a little while, did Sasuke just smirk? - he grinned at the boy and pushed him in, "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Where do you want me to put my stuff?"

"Stuff? What stuff? Huh?" A confused look crossed Sasuke's face, but he recovered quickly and Naruto got the feeling that Sasuke was going to come out of his daze soon. Maybe a little too soon...

"I thought about it, " he paused, waiting for a retort; when none came, he grinned and continued, "And I decided that your plan actually had some merit. So I figured coming over to your house now can be like a trial, if it doesn't work out, we can just come up with another plan." He glanced back at Sasuke and almost pouted when he noticed that Sasuke seemed to be almost completely back to normal.

And he was hoping to glomp him too...

A slight yawn escaped Sasuke before he nodded and made a 'follow me' gesture. Deciding that Sasuke was in his second stage now (the stage where he seems as if he hadn't gotten any sleep for days- excessive yawning, lack of talking, etc.), Naruto rolled his eyes skyward before thinking, _For a guy who's so antisocial and cold, Sasuke's got quite a bit of quirks in him._ Following Sasuke at his heels, Naruto barely managed to stop as Sasuke did.

"This is -yawn- my room. For the next day or so -yaaawn- you'll stay in the room next to mine. If everything goes -yawn- well, you'll sleep in my room for a few weeks or months or wh-yawn-atever."

Taking a few moments to comprehend what Sasuke was actually saying, _let's see, taking out all the yawns... I guess it's okay..., I hope._ "Alright, I'll just put my things in there first then."

A tired sigh, "I'll go make breakfast." He turned and began to walk toward the steps before getting stopped by a yelp.

"Hmm?" Eyes blinking slowly, he turned back around and tilted his head at Naruto.

Squashing an urge to brush that lock of hair away from his eyes, he spoke, "You remember those groceries we brought, like, weeks ago? I brought them over. Do you think they're still edible?"

Raising an eyebrow, Sasuke replied, strength growing with each word he spoke, "Did you **do** anything to them?"

"No, nothing that I know of." _Darn, he's almost awake._

He waved his hand, "It should be fine then. Where'd you put them?"

"Erm... I think..." Naruto turned around, rummaging in one of the bags he brought. With a soft "ah-ha" he brought out another bag and thrust it at Sasuke. "Here, they should be fine, I put them on top. Mostly."

Nodding, Sasuke turned to leave again, "Go to sleep Naruto, I'll wake you up when the food is ready."

"Eh?"

"I know you didn't sleep last night, go to bed."

Shocked at his words - or more like the truth in them - Naruto only obediently followed his words, walking into the bedroom, stripping off his outer clothes as he went. _How in the world did he know?_

Hours passed and breakfast came and went. It was mostly an uneventful passing, except for the food fight that started over the scrambled eggs. And then the bacon. And then the syrup. Leaving that two boys sticky and smelling... weird. Laughing at the sight that the other made, the two collapsed against each other in fatigue, ignoring the sticky mess that they were creating even further.

Sasuke leaned against the table leg, slightly facing Naruto. A silent thought went through his head and he bent forward to follow it.

Bringing up a hand and wiping away a streak of syrup, he brought it back to lick at his fingers slowly. One by one, each digit went in with the brown stain, one by one, each came out with a hint of tongue and smothered in glistening saliva. Finding that his palm also had syrup on it, he continued licking, resembling like a cat cleaning its fur.

Glancing up, he saw Naruto watching him and with a smile, came to his knees and crawled the short distance toward him. Kneeling in front of him, hovering slightly due to Naruto's slouched position, he brought his head down and slowly, lazily trailed his tongue across the expanse of his smooth cheek. Lingering for a moment, Sasuke gently swiped his tongue over Naruto's whisker-like scars, handling each as if it was a treat to be treasured.

Through it all, Naruto was only able to sit in silence, relishing in the feel of the wet, hot tongue caressing his skin. His eyes drooped slowly and by the time Sasuke finished, his eyes were hooded, hiding the hormonal lust that ran though his veins.

Smirking slightly, Sasuke used his cheek to nudge Naruto's head up a bit, before swiftly dropping a kiss on the unsuspecting boy.

There was a pause in all actions until Sasuke insistently moved his lips against Naruto's, nudging him into action. Slowly, but surely, the lips under his own moved. It was a tentative move, a bare push back, but it was all that he needed to continue his assault of Naruto's lips.

Not content with only the lip to lip contact, his tongue darted out to lick at Naruto's lower lip, somehow managing to catch a taste of the breakfast Naruto had just eaten. A small whine escaped Naruto when Sasuke's tongue retreated, savoring the taste of breakfast mixed with Naruto's own sweet, yet husky taste.

Wanting more, his tongue ventured out again, in return receiving a satisfied sigh, allowing his tongue to enter the warmness that was Naruto's mouth.

While their mouths were busy, their hands were not idle, moving from skin to shirt to robe to hair. Up and down, over and under their hands went, ignoring the sticky sensations of the syrup and the clumps of food stuck in the folds of their clothing. All they felt was each other. All they knew was each other.

All they tasted was the delicious sweetness of their crush.

Parting slowly, their eyes met, cautiously, warily, but met nevertheless. Noticing the emotions in the other, they soon relaxed, before Sasuke spoke.

Huskily, with a tongue darting out now and then, "I was thinking to test you on your skills... but is there something you want to tell me Naruto?"

A flush rose up onto his cheeks before he replied with a strong, "No!"

He only received a look in return and he scowled, but then became startled soon after by the light laugh that came from the boy in front of him.

Sasuke leaned back on his feet before standing up and reaching out a hand to help Naruto up, "Come on, we need a shower."

Bewildered, Naruto let out a sharp, "Together!"

Grinning lecherously, he replied with a, "Well, if you want to... I won't stop you."

Blinking once and deciding that he **wasn't** blushing, he shook his head, "No, it's alright. you can go first."

Sasuke shrugged, dropped a kiss on Naruto's cheek and strolled into his bathroom, robe slipping lower and lower and lower with each step he took.

Finally, the door closed behind him and Naruto sat straight back down, touching the place Sasuke had kissed while wondering out loud to himself, "And this was only the first half of the day, how is the rest of the week going to be like? How is the rest of the **day** going to be like?"

Unknown to Naruto, the next three days were to be eventful _indeed._ That is, if he was able to finish this day first...

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1) **This is going to be one of the few references I'm making to the manga's angst. I swear, I'll go nuts if I put in anymore, so if you want something more... canon, I suppose, this is not the story for you.

**(2)** Assuming that Naruto did not tell anyone within the last uh... 4 years. And reminding you guys who read the manga: **Before** Sasuke leaves. Alright? I refuse to believe it happened (when I'm writing this story, I have no problem with believing it any other time)! So right, no one near Naruto's age knows.

**La/-/er-** Alright, I seriously did plan to write the first two days in here, but then the thing of what happened the day Sasuke told Naruto his plan sorta... dragged on. However! No matter how long the next chapter will be, I'm going to finish this really, really long flashback. So get ready for a bumpy ride next chapter. Unless you don't mind me separating the days. It might be easier for you guys to read, but eh :shrug: if you're reading this, it's your choice.

Alright, give me your opinion on how it is so far! Have a good week!

Written: 11-14-04, 11/15, 11-17-04

Edited: 4/27/05


	8. New Helpers

**Disclaimer: **Naruto and all its related possessions belong to Kishimoto and whoever else he feels deserves it. Which is sadly... not me.

**QY-** :wince: Sorry guys, school smacked me in the face, died, then revived with extra power. I actually got a break around last week, but then non-school stuff wrestled me into the ground. Plot bunnies. Multiple, disturbing, annoying plot bunnies. But thank god, as soon as I decided what to write about, they ran away. So I'm back here, but I have to break up the three days to be able to post this so you guys know that I'm still alive and I'm still working on this. If everything goes well, the rest of this should come by the end of the weekend. Apologies, but never worry, this will be finished someday!

**Review Responses:**

**_The Sisters of Chaos:W/D-_** I'm always so happy when someone says they love this story. And you're right it **is** getting good. :wiggles eyebrow: Lol, here's more!

**_Nanashi2- _**Haha, so glad you liked the chapter, it was cute, ne? Hehe, I got a little nervous with the chair towards the end, it was getting a little too perverted and weird for me, I mean... a chair! And syrup is nice... as long as you've got someone to lick it off of you. :-P :bows: If you feel like going on rambling though, it's fine with me!

**_Aurum-_** Yay! It's still worth it:dances: Haha, I was wondering about that (Sasuke not waiting long), but I figure, despite all that we see, Sasuke's not the type to beat around the proverbial bush. Hmm... puppy eyes no jutsu, I forgot about that stuff. Wai! Another commenter on the chair! That's right, you never know what your chair may be thinking... I wonder what my chair's thinking right now?

**_Under the Old Oak Tree-_** Lmao, breakfast is a wonderful part of the day.

**_Sahira-Chan-_** New person! Hug! Aww, comedy at its best! I don't really think so... but so glad that **you** do! Hope you continue to love my writing style. :-D And yes, Sasuke in a robe... :drool: just think of all the possibilities... :scurries off to think of some good stuff for the chapter:

**Half-Devil-**Bwahaha! Evil's my game! Sad to say... yes, Sasuke is a bit of a bastard, but you can't help but just love him in the fanfic world though, no? And of course you can ask where I'm from! The **real** question is, will I answer? ...Which I will. Now see, this question can be answered two ways, 1) where I'm from, as in nationality and 2) where I'm from, as in my home place. I'm answering both because I'm procrastinating, so 1) Guangzhou, China and 2) New York, NY

**_Dark Mimiru-Chan-_** Eh? Plan, you love it:searches: Where is this plan that you speak of? (It totally got trashed last chapter)

**_Ulitheal-_** The best part of food fights, is always the cleaning up part... unless its your home and you don't have a lover to do what Sasuke did. Ha ha! The first day is not even over yet! You'll find out what all happens here:rubs hands together in glee:solemnly: Yes, we are all indeed SasuNaru perverts. At least, I hope we all are, because if we're not... why would we be reading this?

**_AnimeFreakPerson-_** :bows swiftly: Thank you!

**taylor-** Loves my story... so awesome! Hug! And here's your next dose of the story! SasuNaru is the definition of yum, right after Applebee's new grilled steak. Squirrel with a cannon? Where:looks around: I would suggest you to call the police, but they probably won't be able to help you... I suggest you to find a hot air balloon or an airplane if you can afford it, this way, they can't reach you. (Because they **can** go underground and climb up tall buildings, so that won't help you.) :shifty eyes: Be careful, alright?

**_Seito-_** Nyah, Seito! Love your review, would say more, but... I'm sure you would rather have the story typed up, no?

**_daflippnay-_** Lol, wow, be careful that blood doesn't get all over the screen. :chuckle: Here's the next update! Chock full of SasuNaru goodness... I think.

**_SasuNaru123-_** Hehe, thanks, and glad that you're here to join me!

**_Aimi-chan-_** Aimi-chan needs to check her e-mail more often. -.- :sigh: Killua and Gon... I miss them, really need to watch the OVA... I'm still waiting for that e-mail with the plentiful ideas! Meanwhile, you can read what I have so far.

**_averaye-_** Food fights are wonderful, it's another excuse to get us to "clean up" each other... Ooh crap... bad thoughts, bad thoughts... Originally, due to your review, this was going to be really, really, really long, but circumstances have killed me. Not literally. Just time-wise. Yes.

**_Nuppu-_** :tears forming: So happy, it was "one hell of a chapter". That's wonderful. :beaming grin: Food fights are going to appear a few more times in here. :looks around, whispers: Don't tell anyone else, k? Ahh! You were waiting for this chapter... I'm simply bursting with happiness:must contain glee... have to write chapter...:

**ally-** Yesss... the book... I wasn't too sure if I should write it in because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to do it justice. But... well, it turned out okay. And I see you feel the same way, lol.

**_Yuen-chan_-** :giggle: Don't worry, when I read back on what I wrote, I wasn't too sure what I meant either. And interesting way to tell me to review... made me sit up and go... "Wow... maybe I should update?" Lol, but here it is, kind of late, kind of short, but it's better than nothing, no?

_**izumi**-_ Why yes, yes he does, lol.

**_My Poetic Desire-_** :blushes: Thanks... :grins: Really... thanks. I'm so happy, I have nothing else to say...

You guys are wonderful, I now have an average of 18.571428... reviews per chapter. :wobbly eyes: THANK YOU! 20 reviews for this chapter and... from what I can see, 7 new reviewers, whoo! And an average of about a review a day!

On another note, that has nothing to do with anything in this story, ghostninja85 finally wrote a story (after what seems to be years of only reviewing) called **_Progeny_** (hehe, mass html-ing). While I cannot say that it's the most awesome story I've ever read, it's definitely worth it to take some time to read. It only has 2 chapters so far, but if you've got time, shoo and go read it. Haha, shameless promoting. (It **was **2 chapters when I started writing this... now it's like 4)

* * *

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter VIII --- QianYun (formerly The La/-/er, with an equal sign, mind you)

_**New... Helpers**_

"GYAAAAAAHHH!"

A piercing scream ripped though the air, shattering the eardrums of those within miles around the origin of the scream. Blood started to pour all around, streets started running red, more screams filled the air, causing an effect unlike any other...

Er... oops, wrong story, let's start again.

Ahem.

Lee walked swiftly through the streets of Konohagakure, searching for Naruto. He had seen him the day before and became worried at the sight Naruto presented. **(1)** He had a large suspicion that it might've had something to do with the flying rumors, but he had no way to confirm it.

Except he already had a plan to solve the problem should it really be what he thought it was. And if it wasn't... well, it just had to be. Even if it wasn't, Lee was completely sure that it would help Naruto and possibly Sasuke. Really, their interaction with each other made him so sad sometimes. It was heartbreaking to see the two of them dance around each other, neither making a move, both of them confused...

Lee let out a sigh before straightening his posture and loudly declaring to no one, "No worries, youth will prevail and I'll be there to help them along the way! I will protect them from society! They will be free to show their love!"

Happy that he reached this conclusion, Lee continued walking in peace, seeming to have forgotten that his original thoughts weren't leading in this direction.

Weird... for a moment, Lee was thinking about getting them together. But weren't they already?

An uneasy feeling fell over Lee as he walked thought the town. Something was bothering him and he didn't know what it was. For a few moments more, he walked quietly (unnaturally quietly) down the streets, head turning every which way to figure out what was going through his mind.

By chance, he turned his head left and spotted something that struck a memory from the depths of his mind. A scene that he saw not long ago... followed by another memory, this one created only the day before.

With an excited, "Of course, Lee eagerly sprinted towards the area he was in the day before. Looking around, he spotted no one and quietly spoke to himself. As he spoke, he continued to walk.

"I can't believe I actually forgot about yesterday. Sasuke and Naruto really are quite devious, I should've expected something like this from them. But... they still do not know the truth. I can see the true love that runs deep through their veins, the passion that rules their souls that has yet to be released. The yearning that they have for each other burning in their eyes!"

Speaking of burning eyes, Lee seemed to be on the path of having them. While he spoke to himself, he slowly but surely walked towards the Uchiha's house, along the very same path that he had walked the day before. Still floating in the recovered memory, he barely noticed when he arrived at the house, glancing up in confusion when something blocked his way.

He frowned at the tree, but moments later, patted the trunk and changed his course.

That brief interlude caused him to lose his train of thought yet again. But this time, when he picked it back up, he remembered something else. A meeting he had with another brilliant person like himself. The other had seen the same truth as he had and after some (a lot) of pleading and inspiring speeches, in a huff of annoyance, he had agreed to help Lee. The other did not really want to interfere, but had no other way of shutting him up. Not that Lee knew this, he believed that the other was genuinely going to help him out of the goodness of their hearts.

It wouldn't be nice to shatter his somewhat naïve thoughts.

Lee suddenly glanced up, startled by the noise that came from the house in front of him. With much curiosity, he walked up to the house, peeking into one of the many windows. Coincidentally, he looked into the window that led to the kitchen, where Sasuke and Naruto were having a food fight. Lee smiled softly, glad that Sasuke and Naruto seemed to have solved their own problems.

But the smile soon fell away as he continued to watch. Although he knew that the participants could not see it, he saw their slightly tense bodies, even while they fell into the other's ministrations.

Soon, a frown appeared on his face, the dynamics of the relationship that he saw were completely wrong. This was not what he wanted to see from two of his closest friends. This would not do at all...

Suddenly, he was extraordinary glad that he had come up with a plan the day before. It seemed as if they really needed it.

Whipping out his secret weapon, and seeing Sasuke leave the kitchen, he took the opportunity given to him and walked the several feet that allowed him to stand at the front door. He did not bother to knock, simply opened the door that Sasuke would've sworn that he locked and walked in.

He paused at the end of the hallway, stiffening his lips and causing a crease to appear on his forehead.

Lee watched as Naruto stared at what seemed to be the bathroom door - if the noises coming from it was any indication - and spoke.

----------

"Young love seems to fluctuate at an alarming rate these past years. Ah... youth."

A voice floated (no, not literally) over to Naruto's ears, causing him to swiftly turn around to stare at the speaker. To his utter surprise and shock, the words had come from the one and only Rock Lee.

Restraining the ever present urge to yell 'Geyji-Mayu' at the green-spandex wearing boy, he bit his lip in contemplation before speaking.

"Lee! What a surprise! ...how long have you been there?"

A despondent sigh escaped the black haired boy, "Long enough to realize something very sad."

There was a moment of panic in Naruto's mind before he nervously said, "Really? And what would that be?" He raised his arm to brush the back of his head, thinking all the while that, really, he wasn't really sure what he wanted Lee to say.

There was a moment of silence as Lee dramatically paused.

Then a longer moment of silence.

And it stretched.

And stretched.

And stretched.

Naruto had, by this time, lowered his arm and began to twitch in annoyance. Any moment now, he was ready to burst out and shake his finger at Lee while yelling at him an admonishing tone.

Well, at least, he was ready.

And then he wasn't.

Because he was stricken speechless.

Utterly speechless.

Why?

Because if his senses were operating at it's best right now, and if he wasn't mistaken...

He was pretty sure Sasuke had just draped himself all over his back with nothing but a towel on.

And we mean, **nothing** but a towel on.

Naruto was kept from jumping out from under his arm and screaming Bloody Mary as Lee finally decided to speak his mind.

In a total surprising bout of wisdom, he said, "I'm sure you want to keep your arms wrapped around Naruto all day long, but he doesn't seem to be very comfortable in your embrace. Perhaps you're moving a bit too fast?"

Days later, Sasuke would wonder about this statement, particularly coming from Lee, but for now, all he replied was, "He's my boyfriend, why would I be moving too fast?" He ended with a slight - very slight, since we all know it's not true - smirk and that smug look that was purely him graced his features.

Tittering in a way that reminded Naruto - very scarily, we might add - of gossiping housewives - no offense to any housewives out there - Lee spoke with an amused tone that was quite unlike anything Sasuke and Naruto had ever heard from him before.

"Really guys, do you think that I'm **that** naïve. Just because Gai-sensei may seem to be dense and stupid, as I do, it doesn't mean we actually are. We see more things than you guys think." A sly smile crept across his face, destroying the image of Lee that the two had held for so long.

Could it be that they were wrong? Could they have missed something so important? Just because of the way Gai and Lee had acted, the façade they wore?

The horror!

What were all those years of training to be a shinobi for if they could not detect something as simple as this?

Naruto and Sasuke, the dedicated shinobi that they were, were ready to start training even harder than before, not only in their fighting skills, but also on their skills as an infiltrator and more.

But before they were able to sprint away, totally ignoring the reason why they were doing so in the first place, Lee stopped them with a simple laugh.

A simple laugh, yes, but one that said so much.

Oh, so much.

Being the great shinobi that they were - who just needed to brush up on their remaining skills just a bit more, allowing this authoress even more plot devices - they were able to detect the slight inflection in Lee's laugh.

And although they were stronger, they weren't faster than Lee, and they most definitely were not older. It's only a year, but who's counting?

So they got a little scared. No one could blame them, the laugh that came from Lee, not only was devious in its own right, but it seemed to be made even more potent by the inane fact that it was **Lee.**

Of all the people to strike fear in the two overall strongest shinobi of the village at the moment, no one ever expected it to be Lee.

And no one would ever know, for the reason for Lee's laugh became apparent enough and soon, their thoughts were replaced by that of shock.

For Lee held a simple, yet devastating object.

A lot of things seem to be simple today, no?

But as they always say - ignoring that they seem to be rather mysterious and with a missing identity - it is the simple things in life that are the most wonderful.

Or in this case, the most evil.

It was a small object, weighing a little under 5 grams, if dropped, it would still accelerate 9.8 meters per second squared because mass doesn't matter in freefall, but the gravitational pull between the object and the Earth was small, even smaller than it would be with a human, even smaller than it would be with an dog, even smaller than that squirrel looking directly at us on that tree over there...

Run for your life! It's a squirrel!

Ahem...

Getting to the point, the object that Lee held was simple (and clean). It was simply, a key.

A key! A key! We hear laughter echoing within the premises, but you do not realize. It is not a ordinary key by any means.

No, it is not.

(Although you must realize the only way this key exists is within the realm of humor fictions, so try not to take this too seriously. At least, not until we manage to find a key like this...)

This key was not ordinary by any means.

While it had some similarities to that which we call a "skeleton key" in that it can lock and unlock just about every lock there is, it is special in a way that it can only be special in this world.

It was keyed to a person's chakra and was operated not by fitting it through a key hole - oh no, that would be much too common.

It was operated through simple will.

Although, the person using this key must have a very strong will and an even stronger desire to use it.

All of which Lee appeared to have.

Now, one must wonder as Sasuke and Naruto was wondering, where had he gotten such a key? And why does it even exist in the first place?

Well, that is a story to be told in an omake at the end of this chapter to make up for the shortness, so stay tuned.

Meanwhile, Lee started to look contemplative and looked over to the conveniently placed clock on the wall next to him.

Even though Sasuke and Naruto were still in shock - first by the fact that **that** key was there and second by the fact that the knowledge of the key popped up like a mole at the Whack-A-Mole game - they still noticed when Lee muttered ever so softly, "I think he should be getting here around now..."

Panic shuddered through their system as...

Alright, this story is getting ridiculous, let's backtrack just a _slight_ bit.

When Lee muttered his words ever so softly, Sasuke's ears had barely caught on as he had just realized that he was still all over Naruto.

**All over Naruto.**

Wanting to take advantage of the opportunity, but not of Naruto, he slowly trailed his arm down to brush his hand every so often against Naruto. For a few moments, he was distracted by the slight touches, but Naruto merely brushed them off, too intent on narrowing his eyes at the taller boy across from him.

As such, he was rather startled when Sasuke ducked his head slightly to touch his lips gently against Naruto's neck.

It was a soft, teasing brush that tickled and soothed at the same time, resulting to Naruto simply relaxing against Sasuke's loose embrace.

He never realized what it was exactly that he was doing, for the majority of his thoughts laid not on Sasuke's proximity - although we all know which part **is** - but rather at the sight of Lee anxiously, more in anticipation than nervousness though, glancing between the clock and the front door at the beginning of the hall which he stood at.

For a few beats of time, this remained the setting, Sasuke luxuriously trailing his lips across the smooth, tanned area of Naruto's neck, Naruto being severely distracted between two people and Lee glancing between the clock and the door continuously, also sneaking a glance towards Sasuke and what he was doing every so often.

Finally, Sasuke seemed to have grown impatient and wrapped his arms around Naruto, pulling him up against his body roughly, causing Naruto's neck to snap back and more skin to be revealed.

Growling slightly - and totally ignoring Lee- he began ravishing Naruto's neck.

Eyes popped open as a tongue dragged itself down his neck and Sasuke ignored Naruto's whimper in order to concentrate on the taste that was enveloping his senses.

Naruto, so uniquely Naruto.

Speaking of Naruto, it seems that his eyes just rolled to the back of his head.

No... wait, he seems to be moaning as well...

Let us move in closer.

And closer...

And closer...

And clo--

Whoa! Cover your eyes, cover your eyes, we did not see that. PG-13, people, PG-13! Let's keep it that way. Even if we are pushing the limits.

Ignoring what we just did not see, a knock came at the door and Lee hissed an excited, quiet, "Yes!"

Sasuke and Naruto never knew what was coming for them as they were still quite caught up in... whatever they were doing.

We believe that Sasuke was trying to seduce Naruto and it appears that it didn't take too much since Naruto was putty in Sasuke's hands just from necking. Imagine what would happen if they had sex...

But we're not going down that road just yet.

Returning to the doom of Sasuke and Naruto...

Lee walked over to the door to greet whoever stood on the other side. It seemed that this was the person he was expecting as he gave a excited cry when he saw the other person's face.

Then came the moment of truth, they spoke.

And it turned out to be...

Shikamaru!

**This** was who Lee was excited to see?

How the hell do they even know each other?

And why did Shikamaru just say, "Is everything going according to plan? Because I just dragged myself away from a perfectly nice spot just because **you** told me to."

To which Lee replied with a, "Of course, of course! You know I wouldn't lie to you! I said I would get it done by now, and I did. They can't leave anymore!"

There was a quiet 'idiot' murmured, a 'huh?' response and a thundering atmosphere.

A moment of anticipation...

"What. Did. You. Just. Say?"

In perfect synchronization, Naruto and Sasuke spoke.

However, while Sasuke was attempting to keep his towel from slipping off his slim, pale, creamy hip and down past his interestingly smooth, long, sturdy, muscled legs...

Ahem, yes, Naruto was waving his arms around like a maniac, proving once again that though he had matured, it didn't show most of the time.

Lee turned back at them with a gleaming smile and a thumbs-up sign.

"Not to worry guys, as soon as you have sex, we'll leave you alone!"

Jaws dropped and Shikamaru anticipated heads rolling.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1)** In case some of you don't remember, in chapter 7, when Naruto went off to think about Sasuke's proposition, someone was watching him with worried eyes. This is what Lee is referring to, he was the one who saw him.

QY- Here's the promised omake.

* * *

**Where artfore thou, Romeo?**

The story starts out simple enough. It was a bright, clear, sunny summer day.

One with plenty of chirping birds, plotting squirrels and trees that rewound and fast foward. (For more information on the trees, refer to **_Into the Tree and Down We Go_**)

A beautiful day, it was.

Yes, it was.

And in this day, we start with the story of a small boy, a boy who was **not** unlike any other and who was **not** normal by any means.

And no, we're not talking about who you think we're talking about.

At all.

And you know why we know?

Because this is the first time we've mentioned him, so ha!

So this boy has the same family name as our dear Sasuke-kun.

Uchiha.

And we bet you all just figured out who we are talking about.

Yup, that's right, we're talking about Obito.

Okay, that was sort of a bad joke.

No, the Uchiha we speak of today is Uchiha Itachi. The very Uchiha that ends up killing everyone in his family except for Sasuke.

Some believe because Sasuke's was his brother, other's believe in Uchihacest, yet others believe it was the good of his heart, and yet **others** believe he's just sadistic that way.

But today, we speak not of the time of the massacre, no, we return to a much simpler time, a time when Sasuke did not exist yet, that poor bastard...

It was a time when Itachi was... no, not innocent, but definitely more so than his, what, was it, his 13 year old self?

Anyway, let's return to the story.

The story of the key.

The key did not exist for a long time. That's right, it's not one of those artifacts that got passed down generation to generation before it finally got stolen and then passed down through another family generation by generation.

No, this key was created in this very generation, in this very year, this very month, and this very day.

And if you read the title, you will be very curious as to know what was the reason for this creation.

As we all know, Itachi was a child genius. Some could say he still is since he's like, what, only seventeen now?

The point is, he was smart, he was cute and even at five years old, he had little girls running after him. And some of them were... not so little.

It was one of those not so little girls that caused the creation of the key that Lee held to this day... well, sort of.

For you see, it happened on this calm afternoon day. Smart, chibi, cute Itachi-chan was playing by himself out in the backyard.

Did we mention he was playing with kunai and shuriken?

Well, now you know.

So Itachi-chan was all alone, happily playing with his highly dangerous and extremely sharp weapons.

This did not deter the not-so little girl for she bounded over to Itachi with a happy smile on her face and an extra-large bento in her hands.

And no, don't be stupid, the ground did not shake as she walked over.

She just created a little wind, was all.

So she walked over to Itachi and offered him to share her lunch.

To make a long story short for this authoress has to go to sleep to wake up early to study for her 4-chapter AP Macroeconomics test, Itachi politely refused.

Then not so politely refused by shoving the kunai in front of her face.

The girl had a slightly hurt look, but not one to let anything deter her, she shook her head and thrust the bento into **his** face.

Completely startled by this, he tumbled right over his own feet and fell to the ground on his behind.

Still only a five year old, there was a moment where he looked as if he would cry,

But no, he just merely ran away.

And run away he did. He spent half the day running throughout Konohagakure. Not once did he manage to lose her.

Finally, he got tired - he was five, man, five! - and slowed down.

Only to get pounced on.

Whimpering a little because five-year old bodies were not supposed to be crushed by twelve-year old bodies (and yes, that is what we meant by not-so little girl), he attempted to shove her off, but did not succeed.

He gave another push, got her to roll off slightly, and quickly ran towards the conveniently placed abandoned building several feet to the left of him.

Running in, he closed the door, only to see it fall of the hinges.

He was ready to cry, but with his grand shinobi abilities, pushed down the urge and instead took out a key from his pocket and poured all his sadness into it.

In doing so, he also inserted some of his awesome chakra and thus, when the not-so little girl ran over to the door, she was quite unable to cross the threshold.

In his joy, Itachi jumped up and let go of the key, and immediately, the girl stumbled into the abandoned building. She cried out in glee, Itachi fell again and it just so happened that he hand landed right on top of the key.

And she was pushed out.

Itachi found this rather amusing so he did this several times, watching the scene play over and over and over again.

Until finally, the girl stormed away in fury.

**Not** never to be seen again.

Oh no... he saw her **plenty**.

But this is neither the time nor place.

It was in this way that Itachi created the key.

And it was at this time that a legend was created.

The legend of the key.

It probably helped that Itachi decided to mass produce them and sell it to the highest bidder.

Although it seemed that no one really wanted to trust the little guy so the only one who bought one was Maito Gai.

The legend of the key continued to grow, however, the stories of its powers spreading from ear to ear.

And until this day, no one had ever been able to tell a new story related to the key.

Not until Gai passed it down to Lee.

Not until Lee saw what was happening with Naruto and Sasuke.

Not until he decided to help them...

**Owari**

* * *

Written: You want the truth? You can't **handle** the truth! ...Yeah, this was written all in one day, not in several as I led you to believe... (12/16/04 8:01 p.m. - 10:54 p.m.)

Edited: 1/27/05

Re-edited: 4/27/05


	9. Trapped

**Disclaimer:** I want to assume that since you're in this chapter, you already know I don't own Naruto. But as we all know, assuming makes an ass out of you and me. so no, I don't own Naruto or anything related to it. Anything.

**QY-** Two things I wanna say. One- Never ever, ever believe me when I tell you that I'm going update in the next few days. It keeps your hopes from getting too high. Two- You will never have to worry about me not finishing. And three- I wasn't gonna say this yet but you guys totally Rock.

**Review Responses:** (Because there's so much of you :cheer: not all of you have written responses. Regardless, I love you all the same XD)

Thanks to everyone including:

**Noniechan, **Night-Owl123, **AnimeFreakPerson,** Dark Mimiru-chan, **daflippnay, **brokenraven, **Kali Swifteye, **YoungSasuke, **Mariemaia1, **QuestofDreams, **Rukia Bi, **Tenshi Urameshi

**_ghostninja85-_** I always liked the thought of a devious Lee, so he came up here. And believe me, we all wish they would get it on soon, haha. And the reference to your story was needed. It's a good story with not enough recognition.

**_Nanashi2-_** I make them adorable... :gets dizzy:

**Tsugath-** Ah, but the thing about Lee is he _does_ get it. He's one of the few people that can see that they're not really together yet. Remember, this happens before they do. Naruto's still in between the denial-acceptance phase. They just need a tiny push more.

**_Seito-_** Fwha... you have spread the bug. Hugs!

**_Ulitheal-_** I hope reading the added scene in the last chapter helped. If not, tell me. And I'm thinking about raising the rating... possibly. But you are right, we're all pervs anyway, what does it matter? XD

**_averaye-_** Three words: I love you. Seriously though, thanks. And did the extra scene in the last chapter help your confusion? Yes? No? And it's nice that you love my story, cuz I love yours too.

**_Nuppu-_** Yes... it was disappointingly short, but I added a new scene and added a page, whoo! It always soothes my soul when someone says it was worth the wait. And interestingly, ever since I started writing this story... the squirrels have been **everywhere**, I am so not joking. And Itachi is the only one worthy to create the key, lol.

**_Aimi-chan-_** A lemon... might come, maybe. According to one of my friends, I don't write perverted enough. And your idea scared me. Locking Lee with Gai brought a nasty image to mind... but I'll think about it :-)

**_Aurum-_**:insane laughter:

**_forevercrazy18-_** The key is totally awesome, isn't it? So is Lee. And breaking the rules isn't very nice. ...I don't want to change this to a R because I don't want to cut anyone out, so if I do write something not PG-13, it'll be posted separately on my livejournal (created specifically for this purpose) But that makes it sound like I'm writing one, doesn't it?

**_sylver rain-_** Yes, you definitely need to tell me how fantastic this is. Lol, kidding. Thanks for asking me the questions, it helped a lot. And I hope writing the extra scene helped you. The thing with Shika might've been answered in that scene, but I guess it depends on how good you are in reading between the lines. Ice cream... I shudder. Thinking of ice cream when it's 14 degrees Fahrenheit is not pleasant.

**_MeanaLitaia-_** First off, I want to thank you for all the reviews you've written me. Each time I see one, I get the urge to talk to you on AIM and glomp you, but interestingly, every time I try to, you're away. It's a sign... And I know this is going to disappoint you but... real life for me isn't quite as hard as it could/should be considering I'm a junior... I'm just lazy. Hehe. But I'll try harder for your selfishness :-P

**_Yuen-chan-_** My opinions on Itachi switch fast, at that moment, he seemed very cute, I'm glad you think so too. I'm starting to think that I need you to review before I even think of getting myself to write... And we should all re-think our opinion of Lee... he's a very cool character. (my geekiness speaks)

**_Jew-Muffin-_** Your type of reviews always make me so proud. Haha, I'll do my hardest to keep writing as good as I seem to have been.

Sticking in Shikamaru is **Spooy's** idea. It just took me some time to maneuver him in.

**Now, onto the (hopefully) ridiculously long chapter!**

**

* * *

**

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter IX --- QianYun

_**Trapped**_

To say that their reaction to Lee's statement brought feelings of shock and slight annoyance is a huge understatement. There was a stunned silence after Lee said... what he said and the absolute shock that they felt hearing the words come from, of all people, Lee floored the two teenagers and for a few moments, they could only stare at him.

Lee was blissfully smiling at the two teenagers, not quite aware of the killing intent apparent in the their aura. Despite his previous statement of not being as naïve as the rest of the village believed him to be, there was only a certain extent that that truth could stretch and it seemed at this moment that it had reached its limit.

Only to be broken moments later when at the approach of the two teenagers, Lee merely stepped through the doorway to avoid the attack. An avoidance that was made quite well for the two of them were struck speechless once again when they discovered that they **could not leave**. Not a hair, a toe, a finger or a breath was able to escape through the doorway despite the appearance of an empty space.

Frustrated, Naruto brought up a hand to bang at the invisible wall, only to stumble from the shock of hitting thin air. But just as suddenly that he fell, he was rendered motionless as his right arm seemed to hang mid-air. While his forearm and hand were moving, the rest of his body seemed to be plastered against an invisible barrier. Naruto frantically tugged at his arm and soon grew panicked by the fact that he could not move it.

Meanwhile, Sasuke stood behind him, narrowing his eyes at the scene. After a moment of thought, he sighed and said, "Naruto, dobe, that's not going to help. If you stop struggling, I'm sure Lee," here, Sasuke threw a look towards the boy, "will release you."

A bright smile stretched across the expanse of the green-clad boy's face. "How right you are, Sasuke." His eyes twinkled in a way quite unlike the usual fire in his eyes. It could've perhaps been because no one had ever quite seen Lee look... mischievous.

But Shikamaru only sighed in annoyance, wanting to get everything over with because he really, really, missed staring at the clouds with Chouji. Usually with Ino in the background chattering away.

Even with their words, Naruto continued to thrash around, resorting to jumping up and down while his arm was kept totally still in a way separate from his body. It was still moving, proof enough that Naruto could still control his arm, but it didn't move _with _Naruto when he jumped.

The onlookers soon began to grimace because with all the jumping that Naruto was doing, he was doing nothing but wearing away the sleeve of his jacket and with a concerned look, Lee quickly released whatever he was doing, causing Naruto to fall in the middle of his jumping. He quickly grasped his arm to his body and started to poke at it.

Satisfied that he could finally touch his arm and move it along with the rest of the body, he turned, unexpectedly not a glare, but a wounded look towards Lee's direction. Receiving the look and knowing what Naruto was trying to convey, he winced in an apology, but refused to feel regret.

Moving quickly, but carefully, he pushed the two boys back into the house, stepped in himself and dragged Shikamaru with him.

All within a few seconds that were just barely quick enough. A moment later and Sasuke would've been able to push through Lee and escape.

In his towel.

But the impending doom that Sasuke could feel approaching worried him much more than wandering the streets with only a towel on. Besides, since the whole village "knew" that he and Naruto were together now, very few people would even think of coming on to him.

Sasuke may have been known for his broody behavior, but Naruto was known for taking care of his friends. And needless to say, if anybody hit on Sasuke while he had on nothing but a towel without Sasuke's consent and he had heard about it... it would not be a good scene. Added with the "fact" that Sasuke was Naruto's now - people rather thought that Naruto was a possessive kid, and to an extent he was - no one would've expected to come out of the ordeal alive. Or alive and without impending nightmares.

Of course, this wasn't going to be happening anytime soon, so no point in discussing things that will never happen.

At the moment that Sasuke tried to escape, Lee had managed to bring everyone in and simultaneously 'lock' the door. So all Sasuke got was a pained face from smashing against an invisible barrier.

In order to maintain their privacy and to not arouse suspicion when Naruto bangs into an invisible wall as he tries to escape - because we all know he will - Lee closed the physical door and closed the physical lock. Which was pretty much pointless since it was unlocked ten minutes later, leaving behind two teenagers to stare at their backs.

Within those ten minutes, a quick conversation took place, select phrases included:

"You, -bleep- What the -bleep- is wrong with you"

"Now, Sasuke, it's for your-"

"Don't you -bleep- dare tell me it's for my own -bleep- good. I swear I'll -bleep- you up -bleep-"

":yawn: Getting angry won't do you good. Why are you so mad anyway?"

"Why am I so -bleep- mad! WHY AM I-- hey, good question."

If Shikamaru wasn't already expecting that answer, he would've sighed in exasperation, as it was, he just yawned again. "Now that you're thinking clearly again, please remember that we are doing this for your own good and we would appreciate if you actually used this situation to your advantage. If nothing comes out of this, it will be your own fault," he tossed a look towards Naruto, who had for some reason crawled onto the couch of the living room, ignoring everybody else, "and trust me, if you don't get your act together, someone will be **severely **disappointed. And remember, Sasuke, this is Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto. **Do not** do the same things you would do with other people."

At this, Sasuke had narrowed his eyes at Shikamaru, wondering just what he knew. But the thought was wiped away when Lee interrupted to say, "Sasuke, we have already set up certain precautions to make sure that you are progressing in your relationship with Naruto. We only wish the best for you guys and mean no harm. I sincerely hope that this will help. And if it doesn't..." Lee trailed off, a sad look appearing on his face, "I only wish that it will."

With a despondent sigh, he tugged at Shikamaru's sleeve before leaving with him, quietly closing the door behind him.

Both Sasuke and Naruto watched as they left, feeling oddly touched that Lee would care so much. Maybe they should try to work things out?

Meanwhile, outside, as soon as the door closed completely and he was sure that the occupants of the house could not see him, Lee started grinning like a maniac. Sighing, he said, "Ah... I got them good. I always knew I was a good actor."

Shikamaru merely rose an eyebrow and shook his head, "Lee... you scare me."

With a blink, Lee returned to his usual attitude, "Do not worry, Shikamaru, with effort, we can overcome anything!" He struck the good guy pose, and an image of rising waves appeared behind him before he deflated with Shikamaru's departure. For a moment, it seemed that Lee would return to feeling and looking sad, but he perked up and started whistling.

"Ah, what a good day this is." With a wide grin, Lee set off to leave Sasuke and Naruto alone.

----------

"Do you ever think that Lee isn't who he really seems to be sometimes?" Naruto asked Sasuke who was approaching the living room.

"All the time."

"But...?" A curious look crossed Naruto's face, waiting for Sasuke to respond.

"But then I see him with Gai and know that the two of them are hiding something from us. So it's not that Lee's not who he seems to be. It's just that the Lee we see isn't the whole Lee. After all," Sasuke sat on the couch next to Naruto, "Lee didn't know Gai his whole life, so there has to be a part of him that isn't just a clone of Gai. Just as Gai must have grown to be the way he is. We worry about the teenage years so much that we forget that a person's most basic personality is formed when we're still children. Just like you, Naruto."

"Uh-huh." Shrugging off Sasuke's words, he put his right arm under him to push himself up, but as he did so, a hiss of pain escaped through his teeth and Sasuke immediately turned towards him.

"Naruto?"

Already knowing what he would ask, Naruto said, "It's nothing, Sasuke, I guess I was jumping a little too much." He laughed a little, brushing off the pain as if it wasn't a big deal.

Unfortunately, that notion was destroyed when Sasuke grabbed his arm and received another, louder hiss of pain. Suppressing the curse that was waiting to come out, Naruto glared at Sasuke and tried to yank his arm back. But Sasuke kept a firm hold on it and slowly rolled up the sleeve.

When it reached past the point where Naruto's arm had been caught in the barrier, Sasuke winced at the sight. There was a line of red circulating the entire arm and it was not a thin nor neat line.

Some parts were already turning purple and at some places, the skin was more than bruised, it was chafed. Sasuke slowly moved one of his hands around the bruise, and received a gasp of pain from his ministrations. Biting his lip in an unusual sign of concern, the dark haired boy released Naruto's arm to run both hands up and down the arm, examining the extent of the damage. Another noise of pain escaped Naruto, this time muffled.

The pain was a little more than Naruto had expected. There was no reason for a bruise like this to hurt so much. He had been stabbed by kunai and swords, struck by wood and metal and every time, he never felt pain like this. Even when he did, it was something extreme and although the pain might've lasted, any physical markings disappeared soon after. That was the power of the Kyuubi. This bruise and pain was something unexpected and as such, he could not help but indicate the discomfort running through his system.

By the time Naruto finished thinking, Sasuke had a frown on his face. Wordlessly, he got up and went to the bathroom to reappear moments later with a box in his hand. Opening it, he revealed several medicinal bottles and a few rolls of gauze.

"Stay still, Naruto. This might hurt a little." Naruto was tempted to fire off a retort, but knew that he was only trying to help. So he only muttered a quiet, "ok", and let Sasuke did what he wanted.

First, Sasuke opened one of the bottles and poured the liquid onto his hands. He rubbed them together and immediately a smell arose. It wasn't completely medicinal, but there was a sharp smell to it that made Naruto dizzy when he breathed in too deeply. Completely ignoring the smell, Sasuke brought his hands onto Naruto's arm and slowly began massaging the medicinal oil into the skin.

Up and down, Sasuke's hands soothed the muscles in Naruto's arm, relaxing the tense and pained nerves. Every once in a while, Naruto hissed between his teeth, but otherwise remained quiet. Periodically, Sasuke re-wet his hands and each time his hands left Naruto's arm and air would touch his arm, a cool sensation lingered. For a few minutes, Sasuke continued rubbing his hands on and around the bruised area, making sure that his hands touched every part. Naruto watched him as he did this, not speaking a word.

Finally, Sasuke closed the bottle and brought the gauze to his arm. Slowly and neatly, he wrapped the bruised area with the gauze, making sure that they were at least three layers covering each part of the injured area. Satisfied with his wrapping, he dug out a pair of scissors from the box and neatly snipped away the extra gauze. He cut off a piece of medicinal tape and secured the gauze into place.

Everything was done without a sound and when Sasuke finally spoke, Naruto jerked his head up with a start.

"I'm not sure how long the gauze should stay on since you usually heal pretty fast. So just make sure you don't wet it when you take a shower. I'll take off the wrapping tomorrow morning and if the bruise is still there, I rub on more oil."

Naruto gave a silent nod and watched as Sasuke got up to bring the box back. His thoughts remained quiet even when Sasuke came back to stand in front of him.

For a moment, they stared at each other, neither of them having any words to say. Finally, Sasuke sighed and lightly smacked Naruto on the side of his head.

"C'mon idiot, you still need to take a shower from this morning and I need to actually change into some clothes."

At his words, Naruto zoned into Sasuke's bare chest and a light pink dusted his cheeks. He blinked, got up and walked towards the bathroom. The door closed behind him quietly, leaving Sasuke to stare at his back.

He heaved a heavy sigh and muttered, "Idiot."

Suddenly, a shout came from the bathroom, "I heard that, you bastard!"

A smile appeared on Sasuke's lips before he shook his head and climbed the steps to his room.

As the narration of the first day is getting ridiculously long (almost two chapters now), this is the summary for the rest of the day:

Naruto took a shower and discovered that he forgot to bring clean clothes with him. He hurriedly wrapped a towel around himself as he was getting cold, opened the bathroom door and ran up the stairs to his new room.

Since he was running blindly, he ran right into a newly dressed Sasuke, stumbled and fell on his ass, dropping his towel as he went down.

Both boys proceeded to blush in exceedingly red shades before Sasuke made one of those remarks that he always seems to make.

Naruto flushed, snatched his towel and proceeded to walk away from Sasuke, presented him a very nice view _indeed_.

He rushed into his room, searched frantically for an outfit and decided to put on the first thing he found.

Which happened to be a mesh shirt and pants with too many holes in them.

Naruto looked at himself in the mirror weirdly for a moment before smirking in a way that looked eerily like Sasuke and left his room.

He headed to the door, hoping and praying that Lee forgot to lock it, but his hopes were crushed when even though he opened the physical door, he was unable to go out.

Sasuke laughed at him for even trying - not bothering to tell Naruto he already had - and told him that lunch was ready.

Lunch was a quiet affair, even though dessert was Naruto's favorite.

The two boys, after staring at each other, decided that if they couldn't get out, they would avoid each other the best they could.

It didn't work as hours later after that, both of them gravitated towards the living room.

They ended up paying poker until night time.

Then they grew bored with poker because poker is quite boring with only two people and started watching the television.

Sasuke accidentally flipped to a porn channel that had appeared ever since someone moved into the house closest to him.

It had been abandoned for a long time in fear of the Uchiha, but someone decided to be brave and bought the house.

Never mind that the house is so far away from Sasuke's that even if you yelled, he would never be able to hear you. Assuming he wasn't trying to, of course.

The two teenagers had sat, stunned, in front of the television before Sasuke had the courage (the audacity, really) to flip the channel again.

Both boys simultaneously decided to retreat into their rooms for the time being.

An hour later, Sasuke prepared dinner and wandered up to Naruto's room. He heard some curious sounds, but after questioning the other, he only received an answer that Naruto was apparently moving something. Shrugging it off, he told Naruto to come down for dinner and received an affirmative. **(1)**

At dinner, things seemed slightly tense and uncomfortable on Naruto's part.

When they were finished, Naruto washed the dishes and both of them retreated to their rooms to think.

They fell asleep easily...

And woke up easily. The day was spent watching the television, after Sasuke had removed the gauze from Naruto's arm to reveal a bruised, but slightly better looking arm. Each second ticked by with the slowest speeds possible. Several times during the day, Lee dropped by, each time leaving with the saddest expression he could put on.

Although the two boys felt a little bad about disappointing Lee, they had no urge to do anything about it. So they spent the day doing what all the normal teenagers their age did when they were trapped in their house.

That's right. They were training. Beating each other up, taking out their boredom on each other, slashing or bruising every reachable body part. Except for Naruto's right arm. That was the only part of his body that was left intact. Or as intact as it could be considered it was already messed up the day before.

The two teenagers tired out quickly; boredom tends to suck all the energy out of you even when you've been doing nothing. And since those two were fighting, the energy they had left drained pretty rapidly. They spent the next hour on the floor, controlling their breathing once again and then merely stared off into space. Two times, Lee had peeked in to see this scene. While he wasn't exactly pleased that their relationship wasn't progressing quite the way that he wanted it to be, at least they weren't pushing each other beyond the limits.

For several hours, the house remained silent, the only noise coming once from when they decided that they were hungry and needed to eat. This caused another food fight to break out, but it was in a half-hearted spirit, having none of the bounce that the first food fight had. At the end, there was a hesitation on both parts of leaving the kitchen, but without any specific reason to do anything, they separated to clean themselves up. Naruto stayed in the first floor bathroom while Sasuke walked upstairs to use that bathroom.

The whole day was lackluster and vastly different from the usual interaction that they usually had. Uneasy feelings grew between them, both wanting to break the silence but not knowing what to say.

They went to bed, waiting for the next day and as time passed, they thought a lot. Contemplated about the world, life, love, the other boy sleeping in the same house. After the threat of painful headaches from thinking too much in such a short span of time, both of them waited for the next day. They had come to some very important decisions and the only thing left to do was to tell the other.

Tomorrow was to come too early.

----------

As soon as the sun threatened to blind the entire room and fill every inch with bright yellow light, Naruto woke up...

And buried himself into the covers. Even though he had promised himself that he would talk to Sasuke first thing in the morning, he was hesitant to do so now that the time had actually come. Fortunately, Sasuke decided for him with a loud knock on the door.

"Naruto, get up. The sun's shining, we're stuck in the house and I'm getting bored."

Naruto rolled his eyes, though quite obviously, no one could see the action and loudly replied, "Well, tough luck to you Uchiha, I'm having a good time sleeping. Which you so rudely interrupted me from doing," he hinted at his desire for Sasuke to leave him alone, but in true Sasuke form, he ignored the statement and proceeded to systematically knock on the door. He knocked on the door continuously for a few moments - using his slipper, of course - waited for Naruto's reaction and then stopped for a few minutes. Every time that Naruto was just about to believe that Sasuke had left him alone, another series of knocks sounded. It seemed that the two boys really knew each other just a little too well because the pauses varied in time length and just about completely matched with Naruto's thought processes.

Finally, with a groan, Naruto gave up and got out of bed, all the while grumbling at Sasuke and his extreme evil-ness in not letting people sleep in. Honestly, it wasn't like they had anything to do. Yawning and walking towards the door, he had forgotten that he had slept in the nude the night before due to the sudden heat wave. Indian summers occurred way too often in Konoha. He opened the door and blearily opened his eyes, blinking a couple of times. He raised his hand to rub at his eyes and looked out to see...

Absolutely nothing. It appeared that Sasuke realized Naruto had finally gotten up and left without a word, trusting him to leave the room himself. Naruto shrugged to no one and closed the door, walked over to the closet and looked down at himself.

For a moment, he stared down at his body, wondering why he was able to see his entire body without the (unnecessary) obstruction of clothes. Naruto's eyes widened as he realized that he had just opened a door that Sasuke had a large possibility of being on the other side of. In that moment, he thanked all the gods they knew each other so well. If Sasuke was even the least bit doubtful of whether Naruto got up or not, he would've been standing outside the door. And if he had been standing outside the door, he would've gotten an eyeful of everything that Naruto didn't really want to show him... yet.

Blinking a bit at his own thoughts, Naruto shook his head before reaching into the closet and randomly taking out another outfit to wear. When he brought out the clothes, he scrunched his forehead in confusion. Since when did he ever have leather?

Not bothering to think too hard - he had done enough of that the day before - he slipped on the loose shirt, the shiny pants and leather vest, nose scrunching up at the smell of new leather. He felt he should be wondering about that... but quite frankly, he didn't have the energy to. So he shrugged everything off and left the room.

Meanwhile, Sasuke walked down the stairs with a dazed look to his face. He had left Naruto's room, knowing that he would get up, but at the sound of his door opening, he had turned around to greet him, or yell at him, something. But seeing Naruto naked... is something that would cause your vocal chords to stop functioning. He ran the image over and over and over again until his eyes started to water from the imaginary picture.

He was sorely tempted to slap himself, but deciding that leaving a red handprint when there was no one else in the house would not present of good image, he settled with cooking breakfast. It was almost a miracle that he managed to make a breakfast without anything getting burned if it weren't for the fact that he had been cooking for himself for years now. He was getting to the point where he was focused only on cooking breakfast and nothing else. Not even the image of a completely uncovered Naruto...

Damn.

A little later.

Daaaaamn.

Naruto had walked into the kitchen with the outfit that he threw on a few moments ago. A shirt that while was loose, was a little... too loose. The neckline was pretty much non-existent and probably if it weren't for the fact that he wore a vest, he would've been completely bared. And the vest... the vest was leather. And that's enough to be said about that. The pants that Naruto wore, while it was not skintight - skin tight pants are damn uncomfortable for a guy's crotch - it was slim and tight enough to show every twitch of his leg. And it was shiny. Not mind bendingly shiny like jewels, just... shiny.

Sasuke was pretty sure that he had been staring for a little too long because Naruto started to don a smug look on his face. Wrenching his eyes away from the delectable sight, he turned back to his breakfast, grateful that he hadn't been staring long enough to burn anything. He turned off the fire, set the table and started serving the food. All of this was done in silence and he could see that it was starting to get to Naruto.

Soon enough, a pout formed on Naruto's lips. While he hadn't specifically chosen the outfit for the day, he expected something a little more than a simple stare. Honestly, he was so-

His thoughts were completely interrupted when Sasuke sat on his lap. Before he could eek out a sound, Sasuke picked up the dish of food and started to feed it to him. Every time he finished chewing, another forkful of food was shoved at him and while he was chewing, Sasuke also fed himself.

Determined to finish chewing his food before Sasuke did and _say_ something, he came close to choking when the dark haired boy decided to take advantage of the situation and kiss him. The thing that made him choke was that Sasuke had kissed him on the cheek, oh-so-sweetly. And Naruto was left speechless.

Sasuke rose an eyebrow before smiling slightly and continued to feed Naruto food. They spent the rest of breakfast like this, Sasuke sitting on Naruto's lap, feeding him and himself in turns. It was a quiet morning, but unlike the day before, the air was one full of content feelings.

Somehow, in the span of a day, the boys managed to find a balance and a solution. All without speaking to each other. Somehow, they knew what the other wanted. Somehow, they agreed on the same thing. Somehow... they came together. **(2)**

Just like everyone else in the village wanted them to.

It was unfortunate that Lee had not arrived at the house yet, for this would have been the perfect picture. But as it was, this memory was left to only Sasuke and Naruto. As it was meant to be.

By the time Lee had returned, Sasuke and Naruto had resorted to... cuddling on the couch. They had fell asleep together, wrapped around each other in an embrace.

But even in their sleep and innocent cuddling, you could cut the sexual tension in the air with a knife. Although Lee had said that he would not let them out of the house without them having sex... he was pretty sure that two hormonal sixteen year olds who had finally confessed their love for each other would not keep their hands to themselves. At least... he hoped not. That would be rather depressing and sad. In the non happiness antonym kind of way.

So, with those hopes, he unlocked the house and waited for the two teenagers to awaken.

He was going to wait a _long_ time.

The two teenagers somehow managed to sleep through most of the day despite that they had nothing the day before. They woke up a few hours after dusk and it was only because they were hungry and they smelled a delicious aroma coming from the kitchen. Simultaneously, the two boys got off the couch and walked towards the kitchen, stomachs grumbling all the way. They reached the doorway and discovered Lee in the kitchen, contently cooking dinner.

Without a word, the two of them sat at the kitchen table and patiently waited for Lee to finish. When he did, he brought out three plates and three bowls and set the table, never showing any surprise at their appearance.

Then again, their stomachs were rather loud...

"I'm glad that you guys were able to solve your problems." Lee spoke softly, as if not wanting to break the peace in the house.

Naruto smiled at him, one of those grins that reminded everyone just why he had a fan club and said, "Yup! I don't know how and I don't really care, but we're together now. I want to say thanks, Lee. Although I still don't think locking us in the house was so smart..." Naruto trailed off, not wanting to really offend the guy who made such a delicious dinner for them.

"Whatever it takes, Naruto, whatever it takes." Lee grinned, once again reminding the two of them exactly what it was they discovered about him in the past few days.

Sasuke just shook his head and said, "As grateful as we are, Lee, because of you, our plans got pushed back."

At this, Lee perked up, "You mean, your plan for revenge?"

"Uh... yeah. How'd you know about it."

"Eavesdropped. Anyway, I think I can help!"

"Help?" This time, it was Naruto who spoke with an incredulous tone.

"Of course! You're my friends! Why wouldn't I?"

There were a million answers that they could've given Lee, but since he _was _trying to help... "Well, we thank you for your help ahead of time then."

"No problem!" And smiles blossomed on every occupant's face.

Including Shikamaru.

"...When in the world did you get here?" A startled Sasuke spoke, even while he was saying to himself, _'You were not startled, get over yourself.'_

"When you guys were too busy talking about helping each other. I'm going to help you guys too."

"Eh, Shikamaru? You're going to help?" Naruto said, amazed at his willingness.

"Ino's been bothersome, obsessing over this issue so much. I figure this is the best way to pay her back."

And so, the plan of revenge expanded to include both Lee and Shikamaru, two friends who were very willing to help them out.

The next day was spent smoothing out plans, allowing for any surprises that may pop up their way and as they found out later, there would be _many_ surprises that they had not been expecting.

On the fifth day, Shikamaru told Sasuke and Naruto that he had spotted Ino and Hinata searching the country for Gaara and suspected that they would soon visit them. His suspicion proved correct and was told at the right time, for they were prepared for the doorbell and started to pull off the biggest prank/revenge Konoha had seen for a long, long time.

Thus, we return to the point in time where the story had last been left. And it is here that their revenge truly begins.

**To Be Continued...**

**

* * *

**

**(1) **I love you guys very muchly for your support. As such, for those of you slightly more... perverted than others, there is an optional scene that I wrote some time ago that was supposed to be in the original chapter 7, but after all my procrastination, it finally found its place in this chapter. As this is a PG-13 fic and I expect you guys to be mature (regardless of whether you are over 13 or not), I feel it is okay to tell you right now that it's just an amateurly-written scene of Naruto masturbating. For those of you who want to get a taste of my "hentai scene", you can find it under an lj-cut named "Practicing Pervert-hood" on October 21on my livejournal that is available on my bio, it is my homepage. If you decide to read it, I would appreciate any comments you have. Even if it only consists of "Dude, you suck. Stick to normal stuff." I would be happy to receive it.

Depending on the feedback on the short scene, I might write a lemon to feed all of your sick fantasies. XD But of course, if my writing isn't good for that kind of stuff, I'm not gonna try. So it depends on your reactions. If no one reads it, I'll take it as a sign that what I have is enough and you guys won't need a fully descriptive sex scene between Sasuke and Naruto written by me.

**(2) **This is not a lame attempt to get it over with. Some part of me actually believes in this. That extremely fluffy, sappy, and sugary part of me. I try to avoid it... but it's hard. I love it too much.

**QY-** I did it again. I procrastinated for a long period of time and then finished the chapter in a day. Started it on the same day too. I'll say it again... I kill myself. Anyway, this did turn out to be longer than usual, so I hope everyone likes. This is when things start getting interesting. :insert evil laugh:

Written: 1/27/05 4 p.m. to 1/28/05 12:38 a.m.

Edited: 4/27/05


	10. And So It Begins

**Disclaimer:** Yeah... I would have something witty to say, but I've discovered that I don't have such a sharp wit. Especially when I try. So yup, don't own Naruto.

**QY-** You know that you're seriously obsessed/have something seriously wrong with you when you have a headache and imagining Naruto say Sasuke's name makes you feel better. And I am **so** not kidding. I was in bed last night with a really (x4) painful headache, I woke up every hour, and drifted in between. The only times my head didn't hurt was when I, for some reason, heard 'Sasuke' in Naruto's voice. Otherwise, I was too busy punching the right side of my head. I decided it was a sign, so I'm starting the chapter a tad bit early.

Of course, this chapter is mostly fluff, some WAFF, more fluff, some toothaches, a few (hopefully) drool-worthy scenes. A few times when the green-eyed monster appears (no, not Gaara, silly) and basically, this will seem extremely pointless. But believe me. There is a point. Mostly. I think.

**Review Responses:**

My gratitude to all the readers and reviewers. I still love you even if you're not part of the latter. That is... you **do** like this story right? That's why you're reading?

**luvsanime** (Yes'm!), _Night-Owl123_ (Hurry, hurry), Liliath (Happy that you're happy), **My Poetic Desire **(Wai! More!), _quaebah24_ (The rush of words make me dizzy -), Donna Kitsune's muse, Foxfire (I know a good asylum in my house), **Tenshi Urameshi** (I hope this is cute too, and we shall find out...), _Beloved Fool_ (I hope you do), shineyhappypeople (I'm glad you think so. And yes... I agree.)

**_ghostninja85-_** Your review in turn made me blush prettily (ha!), laugh evilly, and smile in glee. I'll take into account what you said when I go over all my chapters at the end. Thanks! And I appreciate what you wrote on the smut scene. I'll be sure to... use it in the future. Hehe, I love being the author, the breakup will be **very** convincing. And you'll see why.

**_QuestofDreams-_** -groans- I can't believe you called it his Happy Time... But thanks for the comments. Their revenge starts in this chapter, although a few people may not realize that... And because you gave me an actual reason to write the lemon, I think I'll push my apprehensions aside and work on it so I can, like you said, solidify their relationship. Yesh. -nod nod-

**_averaye-_** I hope you meant beginning piece. Anyway, thanks for the compliments, coming from another author makes it that much sweeter. Humor, it seems, is my best quality. Updating does sometimes seem like a chore... which is why I wait until I can't wait any longer to update. XP

**_Aurum-_** -giggle- Thanks for the review, it was marvelous. And I would comment, but then this would turn out to be _way_ too long. I'm glad that I made you write such a long review though. XO And I agree, no matter what, humor is my main thing. (Oh man, the chair... I wince)

**_YoungSasuke-_** I was trying not to make him _too_ non-Leeish. I guess I didn't do too well. It doesn't matter much now though. There's no more reason for him to act as he had been. And the revenge starts in this chapter.

**_Ulitheal-_** It's hard not to love the extremely pukish sap. It was fast? Probably because I was trying very hard not to make _another_ chapter come out of this. I have a tendency to drag things out **too** long or as you can see, a little too fast. And Gaara's role will be... somewhat surprising.

**_sylver rain-_** Heehee. I blush. I hope that you will find a new purpose for your existence, seeing as this story will end. Lame joke, but still funny XD And I live in NYC, although these days, the temp is at 40 F. -rubs hands- Yessss... delicious revenge. Actually, my title is rather misleading when I think of the rest of the story... it turns kinda sour.

**_Aimi-chan-_** Honestly? I have no idea how interesting it would be with their help. I still have my old plan of revenge, but I have yet to revise it. Although a few things will go a little easier... Double revenge... oh man, your ideas are good, but gives me too much extra plot and writing. Darn you!

**_Seito-_** It's okay, I'll forgive you if you forgive me. And I think it was worth it. The story is good. Really.

**_MeanaLitaia-_** Hee, I've been a little busy these past few days, but soon, I'll be sure to IM you and (hopefully) start a new online friendship. Habits are hard to break. Um, well, there aren't too many surprises **yet**, but they will definitely be popping up soon. Ah... a fan of all my stories... I love you. So I'm guessing you're a senior, and really, there's _always_, time for fanfiction, somehow.

**_ewyounerd-_** Your "name" is vastly interesting. I thank you very muchly for all your comments, and believe me, I'm reading each and every single word. This response was longer... but I think we can just keep it on the lj pages/e-mails.

I have yet another question for you guys about the pairings at the end. If you don't care, just skip over it and go straight to the review button :nudge nudge: otherwise, read it over.

* * *

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter X --- QianYun 

_**And So It Begins**_

He felt warm. Not particularly safe or loved, as the cliché would have it, but definitely warm. Although, he supposed the feeling of safety and love came from the warmth. The warmth that originated from the arms which were wrapped around him. For a while, he allowed himself to relax within the embrace.

But then he felt the gaze of many eyes boring down on him, pressing into him. The intensity lied not in the numerous stares, though there were many, but from the feeling he could sense emitting through the observers to him.

He shuddered once and the arms around him tightened. A soft sigh was breathed out that was then followed by a multitude of exhales from the observers.

His eyes flickered underneath the closed eyelids. Instinct called him to open them and glare at whomever was intruding on their privacy. However, intelligence told him to keep his eyes closed and bide his time. There was a small timer ticking away in his mind and as soon as he felt the arms shift, the alarm rang - both physical and mental - and he reacted.

The first thing he did every single morning in his own bed was still done in Sasuke's. He slammed a hand down on the alarm clock - nearly smashing it in its innocent ringing - burrowed under the covers, and cuddled the first thing he grabbed onto. In this case, it was not his extra pillow, but another warm, human body: Sasuke. He held on tight for a few moments before judging that enough time had passed in his pretend after-sleep.

He had shifted around to make himself more comfortable, but he froze a moment later, as if just realizing exactly what it was that he was holding onto.

He felt the eyes shift in confusion, could feel their anticipation of him re-tightening his hold. But with a hidden smile, he slowly let go of his boyfriend, sat up and proceeded to stare down at the boy in front of him.

While Naruto sat up on the bed, eyes widened and jaw loose, Sasuke continued to lie on the bed, seemingly undisturbed by the sight of a half-naked Naruto on his bed. When Naruto sat up, Sasuke's eyes were drawn to the balcony, which was directly in front of the bed and in line with Naruto's body. Sasuke's eyes flickered between the two and smiled. A little devilishly, a little mischievously, but also in complete satisfaction.

However, the observers saw only a smug smirk on Sasuke's face even while Naruto grinned back at him, back facing the balcony and thus hiding it from view. It was the perfect timing to truly begin their plan. They hadn't expected too many things to come out of their meeting with the three girls yesterday, but the gazes they felt on them revealed enough, even if a quick glance outside revealed nothing. Suddenly, the day seemed a hell lot brighter.

To those outside, a storm had just intruded.

With a gasp and a muffled shriek worthy of even the girliest of Mary Sues, Naruto scrambled off of the bed, anxious to get away from the... the... the _half-naked **Sasuke**_ in his bed! He paused for a moment and quickly erased his original thought. _He was half-naked with a similarly half-naked Sasuke in _his _bed! _In his haste to get away, he fell out of the bed and onto the floor, pulling away more than half the sheets as he discovered that he only wore his boxers. The too small ones that he had accidentally bought a few months ago. Face flushing in what appeared to be both embarrassment and anger, he stood up quickly, allowing the observers outside the house a full view of a mostly bare backside.

Distracted for a minute, they tuned in a little bit later to catch the end of Naruto's tirade.

"...the hell am I doing in your bed!"

Contrary to what the observers thought Sasuke's reaction would be, he only smiled a lazy smile, content to let Naruto rant on, though he had already stopped.

"Now, now, Naruto. Don't tell me you've already forgotten last night? And we had _such_ a good time too..." Sasuke trailed off, his expression caught between looking pouty and proud.

Naruto blinked in shock before walking backwards, towards the balcony. "Sasuke, what... what are you talking about? What last night?" Panicking was not something that Naruto was used to feeling, but at that moment... he seemed to be teetering on the edge. Teetering on both the mental and physical edge for he continued to back up to the side of the balcony doors.

Sasuke slowly smiled, "Naruto... don't tell me you forgot the _wonderful _night we had? And I thought..." he trailed off, seeing Naruto reach the doors and immediately burst in laughter.

"Man... I can't believe you thought I was telling the truth. Relax, we didn't do anything last night. Remember? We went to bed together 'cause you wanted to get used to it." He rose one of his eyebrows and cocked his head at Naruto's still panicked look. "Naruto... you idiot, are you okay"

A red color bloomed across the blond boy's face and muffled sounds came from outside. In a sudden movement, both Sasuke and Naruto snapped their heads towards the balcony. Naruto opened the door and peered out, but only discovered a few rustling bushes and trees.

But of course, there was no wind what-so-ever.

The two teenagers waited for a while before relaxing their bodies. Sasuke laid himself back on the bed, keeping his eyes on the other. Naruto, on the other hand, kept his head outside for a moment longer before closing the balcony doors and drawing the blinds. He turned around with a bright smile and ran...

Straight to the bed, jumping on top of Sasuke. He stretched his body right over the dark haired boy's, not caring that in this position, he could feel the other boy's entire body. He crossed his arms on Sasuke's chest and set his head down on them.

"Good job?" Naruto smiled in a slightly silly way, wanting Sasuke to compliment him. Sasuke fulfilled his silent request by smiling back and saying softly, "Great job", before lifting his head to peck Naruto on the cheek. He set his head back onto the pillow and wrapped his arms around Naruto. "Let's sleep some more, we stayed up late last night." The whiskered boy frowned in confusion before his face cleared and he nodded.

"Yeah, who knew that the bed was so hard."

Sasuke rolled his eyes before lightly smacking Naruto on the head. "Kami-sama, your words always sound so dirty."

"Dirty? What do you mean dirty? There's nothing dirty about what I say!" Speaking in an indignant tone, Naruto was the sight of a wrongly accused man... if it weren't for the fact that he was holding onto Sasuke like he was his only lifeline.

"Everything you say is dirty, Naruto. Whether you think so or not."

Several hours passed while the two teenagers lazed around in their bed. They were supposed to meet the rest of their former team at noon and that time was soon approaching. Refusing to wake up, Naruto had tightened his grip on Sasuke as the minutes ticked by, until the dark haired boy started to wince in pain. Deciding that only bad things would come if he let Naruto sleep longer, he shook him.

Except, he didn't budge.

Giving a frustrated sigh, Sasuke attempted to get out of the bed with Naruto still attached to him. After a few moments, he succeeded, but it seemed that even all the shuffling movements he had made to get out of bed didn't bother Naruto as he continued to sleep on. Peering down at the other boy, Sasuke was greeted with a dreaming Naruto, a content smile on his face. Restraining the part of him that desperately wanted to express how cute the sight was, he brought his hands behind him in an attempt to pry off the other's hands. Slipping his own hands between his body and Naruto's hands, he pulled, pushed, pinched and did a few more actions that started with a 'p'.

All to no avail, as the blond boy's grip was firm and not even Sasuke was able to detach him. His mouth twitched and deciding that yelling into his ears would be too plebian, he proceeded to the bathroom, inch by inch, step by step. By the time he reached the bathroom, he was close to panting in exhaustion. The boy was heavy; made even more heavy by the fact that he was attached to him.

Thanking the deities that he had a bathroom on the upper floor as well as the lower, he opened the door and continued to drag Naruto over to the bathtub. It was a good thing that they both only had their boxers on, or else that would've been more laundry to do. Sasuke brought both of them into the bathroom and steeling himself, turned up the cold water. Putting Naruto in the direct line of the shower's spray, of course.

For a few moments, it seemed as if nothing would happen and Naruto would continue to sleep on - leaving Sasuke to wonder how he would **ever** be able to wake Naruto up - before his eyes started to open oh-so-slowly. He was waking up, but he didn't seem to mind the cold water...

That is, until his eyes snapped open, his arms retracted from around Sasuke's body and he jumped out of the bathtub, shivering all the while.

Sasuke, on the other hand, stayed under the shower's spray for another few minutes as Naruto's arms, hands and wandering fingers didn't draw back _quite_ as fast as he would've wanted it to.

Even with the cold water

A smirk disappeared just as quickly as it came while Naruto looked on. He would've said something; heck, it was on the tip of his tongue, if it weren't for his shivering and chattering teeth. As it was, he attempted to force angry words through his clenched jaw. Only, now it sounded more like he was pouting.

(Add stuttering) "Why did you do that? What in the world is wrong with you, shoving me into the cold water?"

Stepping out from under the cold shower as calmly as he could, Sasuke smirked at him before putting on the most innocent expression he could muster. "You wouldn't wake up," he added just a _tad _bit of fluttering eyelashes for extra effect, "I couldn't think of _anything_ else to do." Naruto further clenched his jaw, this time, not because of the cold. Damn the boy, he actually knew how to use his abilities...

There was a section of time where Naruto looked ready to say something more, but with an angry frown, he merely flounced away. An amused look crossed Sasuke's face as he watched Naruto exit the bathroom. Sometimes, it really surprised him how feminine Naruto was... you would've never expected it from him. To be honest, Sasuke didn't think that Naruto even really realized the things he did. It was frightening, sometimes, seeing Naruto do something so unlike him. Except, it was really just another quirk that made up Naruto.

He shook his head, flinging water throughout his bathroom. For a moment he stood under the shower spray, allowing his hair to get wet once again before shutting off the shower. He bent his head forwards, backwards, and sideways, working out the cricks in his neck. He stepped out, took off his boxers, tossed them into the laundry basket and proceeded to walk back to his room naked. Actually, at the moment... it was more like _their_ room.

Which Sasuke knew quite well.

The dark haired boy walked into his room, casually approaching his closet to find something to wear. All the while, Naruto stood at the front of the bed, eyes widened and body unmoving. Sasuke drew out a pair of pants and a shirt, pulled them both on, and while fixing his hair, turned to Naruto. Speaking as if nothing was wrong, he asked Naruto if he was alright. But Naruto was only able to blink in silence, and even then, the movement was slow and lethargic. The other boy shrugged his shoulders and informed the blond that he would be starting breakfast - or rather, lunch - and with that, he turned and exited the room.

Sasuke sauntered out of the room, deliberately walking as if nothing was different and making sure that Naruto's eyes followed his departure. A smirk appeared on his face, it was _so_ fun to fool around with Naruto's mind.

As promised, Sasuke went to the kitchen to prepare their first meal of the day. A simple meal of udon provided him with enough opportunities to add in vegetables- particularly in Naruto's bowl. Eating ramen all the time was not healthy, even though it was close to the only choice Naruto had if he wanted to eat three meals a day. Still, at least he drank milk... it was expired half the time, but it was the thought that counted, sort of.

Shaking his head at the thoughts regarding Naruto, he completely missed the boy's entrance until the moment that he set the bowls on the table.

At that point, a hand forcefully turned Sasuke around and before he could do a thing, a pair of lips attached themselves firmly to his. There was a muffled noise from him before he relaxed and leaned into the boy before him. At first, it was a simple lip to lip contact before Sasuke relaxed even more and his lips parted slightly. Taking the chance offered to him, Naruto slipped out his tongue and trailed it across the dark haired boy's lips before sliding it into the other's mouth. The first contact proved to be nothing spectacular, no fireworks, no sparks, nothing special at all. But Naruto lingered in his mouth and soon, a warm feeling spread through both boys' bodies. Their tongues danced around each other, their lips smothered each other, hands wandered, legs rose and a moan escaped.

Caught up in the moment, Sasuke wrapped his legs around Naruto's body, trying to bring himself closer and closer. The kiss grew passionate and Sasuke started to grow fierce, he pushed against Naruto even while he pulled him closer, maneuvered around the blond's tongue to sneak into the other's mouth. He moaned again, feeling the warm, wet cavern- essentially the same as his own mouth, but still oh-so-different.

A few times, Sasuke thought he tasted a faint trace of peaches and honeydew; an odd combination, but at the moment, Sasuke couldn't get enough of it. Finally, the laws of nature called for them to separate and take a breath, the small amount of air they drew from their noses becoming inadequate.

They parted, a faint trace of saliva connected the two of them before it broke with more distance. The two of them panted; Sasuke and Naruto both licked their lips a few times. Naruto grinned a fox smile, a mischievous one that clearly indicated his satisfaction. Sasuke rolled his eyes, but smiled soon after. With his legs still around Naruto, he curled his arms around Naruto's neck and petulantly said, "Carry me."

Naruto looked over to the kitchen table - which they had somehow wandered away from - and back, "It's like... three feet away."

The paler boy pouted, "Naa-arutoo..."

The blond winced, before complying with his request and carried him the short distance to the kitchen table. "There, happy now?" But it seemed Sasuke was not, for although he smiled, it was a smile that usually came before a request.

"Feee-eed me." Immediately, Naruto's eyebrows furrowed, Sasuke was acting weird- very, very weird. Using one hand to keep the Uchiha from falling, he brought his other hand up to feel the other's forehead. It didn't _feel_ warmer than usual...

"What do you think you're doing?"

Naruto replied cautiously, not knowing what could provoke Sasuke, "I thought you were feeling sick since you're acting so weird." Or maybe not so cautiously.

Sasuke brought his mouth to the blond's ears, "Naruto, if you feed me... you won't regret it..." With each word, hot air brushed across Naruto's ears, each different breath causing a slight tingle to originate from his ears and spread to the rest of his body. He didn't want to be manipulated... but damn if that didn't sound tempting!

After some thinking, and deciding that he had nothing to lose, he sat down with Sasuke in his lap, much like it had happened several days before. Only this time, it was Naruto who was feeding Sasuke. With every bite he took, he gave another forkful to Sasuke; it was tedious at first, but with each mouthful, Sasuke grew more relaxed... more content. Seeing Sasuke so loosened - and non-angsty - made Naruto in turn feel happy. And so, he was content to continue feeding Sasuke.

The meal took longer than usual because of this, so by the time they were ready to leave, they had only a few minutes before noon, although with their teacher, it was unlikely that they would be scolded at for being late. Not that they would since the bridge they usually met at was only a twenty-five minute walk away, or for them, a six minute sprint away. They cleaned the kitchen, gathered up their gear and then raced to the meeting place.

--------

They arrived at the bridge with relatively little fuss, meeting only a few passersby that gave them a mere moment's glance. Amazed at the speed of gossip in the town - for yesterday afternoon, when they decided to visit the town, they were met with all kinds of stares - the two exchanged smiles, concealing their glee within themselves. Everything was working so well.

A little too well, and as everyone knows, that's when the shit _really_ hits the fan. But, that time has yet to approach, and for now, Naruto and Sasuke both basked in the glow of success.

Walking side by side as they neared their destination, their hands occasionally brushed by each other until Naruto became frustrated and grasped Sasuke's hands. He grinned at the dark-haired boy as he turned to look at him and received a small smile in return.

And then they came to the bridge. Or where the bridge was supposed to be, only, it seemed to have disappeared with the amount of people surrounding and standing at the bridge. Naruto sent a confused look at Sasuke, but just received a shrug. He shrugged as well and sped up, tugging Sasuke along with him.

It was inevitable that someone would notice them and as soon as one person saw them, the whole group turned until the two boys became the pinpoint of scrutiny. Silence reigned across the area and almost unconsciously, both of them took a step back before continuing their way to the other end of the bridge. As they walked, the group parted into two rows, creating a pathway that allowed the two of them to walk abreast. It was uncanny, the way that all of them simultaneously parted. Moving past them, the two teenagers caught glimpses of females and males alike, most of whom they recognized, but there was still a great number of people that they didn't recognize.

As they walked down the bridge, Sasuke brought his arm up to set around Naruto's shoulder. At this, Naruto sent a questioning look in Sasuke's direction, but receiving only a raised eyebrow in reply, Naruto gave a soft smile and _snuggled_ into his embrace. A ripple of noise spread through the observers, but by the time the two boys had reached the other end of the bridge, all had fell silent once again, causing yet another chill to go down their spines.

It was extraordinary freaky... the way the whole group just... did these things. Speaking of those things, why on earth were they even there in the first place?

However, even as the two shinobi questioned themselves, they knew that the answer lied in their little "event" that morning.

Ah... the fruits of good acting.

Having reached the end of the bridge, they were greeted with the sight of their remaining teammate, Haruno Sakura and... their early teacher.

The shock! The horror! The... perverted and amused look on his face that was visible even through the mask! Sasuke narrowed his eyes at the other two members of their team before tightening his grasp on Naruto's shoulder, causing him to _sigh_ and snake his arms around the dark haired boy's waist.

And now everybody had the idea of who the uke was in the relationship. Except...

Sakura greeted the two of them with a smile, all the while an anger mark appearing on her forehead. Kakashi stood by, merrily watching the events, ready to intervene should it be necessary. And in Kakashi's eyes "necessary" meant that one or more of his team members were on the verge of death. So help was obviously never coming from him. A fact that Sasuke and Naruto slotted in their minds quite readily.

Approaching their two silent team members, they stopped abruptly as Sakura also seemed to... explode abruptly.

(Insert caps) "What in the world do you guys think you are doing! Trying to fool us with that stupid act? If you wanted to tell us the truth, you could've told us straight out! There is no reason in hell that you had to put on an **act** just to get your revenge on us. And what the hell were you thinking about that too! Revenge! REVENGE! I'll give you revenge you little measly bas-mmph humph phm mmphph. Get off of me you idiot! What the hell-

Oh. Um, Lee-kun. How are you?"

But Lee only shook his head in a slow, disappointing manner. "My dear Sakura, cherry blossom that you are, how could you **ever** think of such things of these two wonderful youths? I have seen their love in all of its pure beauty, and even now my heart beats in all of its fragility in the absolute miracle that I have seen coming from the two of them. Their love is a blessing sent to them for the losses the two of them had to go through. A love that they have searched for all their lives in that one perfect person so that the pain of the past could be erased. No... not erased! Treasured! For it was those painful memories of the past that had brought them together. Through trials of hardships, through all the bigotry of the people, through unexpected diversions from their paths, they have found in each other the hope they had been yearning for all their lives!

Their love is like a flower that bloomed in the late spring, slow in coming, but the most beautiful of them all! Their relationship is as balanced as yin and yang, the darkness in each reaches out for each other, even while the light in each searches to save the dark spots. The triumphs that they have suffered through in their lifetime, the absolute pain that each had to live through has come to this point so that they can finally come together. Their love... no, it is not only love, it is beyond love! Their absolute compatibility has brought them together to join in a union that will prosper even while all other things around them fail! Even when the winter finally arrives and the trees and nature falls into a deep temporary sleep, their love will blaze like an unending fire! It will never go out because their love goes beyond love! It reaches deep into their souls and pulls out all that a person will ever need to survive in this harsh world! The hardships that they have gone through will not stop them! No, it will bring them further together because those hardships are what brought them to this point. Their hardships are not to be forgotten! They are to be treasured because of their role in-"

"Lee, you're repeating yourself. You can stop now. They're all gone." It was quite obvious that Naruto was trying - and failing - to contain his laughter, but even so, he managed to give a grateful look to Lee. **(1)**

"All of them?" Lee looked around the bridge's area, noticing that, indeed, during his long speech about the purity of Sasuke and Naruto's love, the entire area was now free of all people except for the three boys. It appeared that not even Sakura nor Kakashi could handle the speech for much longer for even their chakra trail had long gone cold.

Lee smiled in glee, clapped his hands and struck the good guy pose, "I have succeeded in my mission! Even so, I shall do three hundred laps around the bridge on my hands!"

"Lee? I don't think that's such a good idea. The river is pretty cold." Worry crept into Sasuke's voice as he contemplated what Lee was proposing for himself to do. He may have still thought that the other teen was freakishly weird - the eyebrows did **not** help - but he was a good friend now, of sorts. Not to mention he was sort of important for the rest of their plans. Lee walking on his hands through negative something or other degrees Celsius water would not promote his health.

But Lee refused to listen and merely stuck the good guy pose again, "No worries! I will not get sick from negative something or other degrees Celsius water! My youth will prevent that from happening." And with that, Lee bent to do a handstand and proceeded to walk around the bridge - that means in the river as well - on his hands.

The two onlookers winced as Lee first put his hand into the water, to immediately bring it back. Even so, Lee "walked" into the river with determination, miniscule shivers already traveling up and down his body. They wanted to persuade him not to do it... but it was highly unlikely that he would even listen, so they decided to sit there until Lee was done. It wouldn't do for him to get sick because he got tired and flopped into the river.

So Sasuke and Naruto walked to the edge of the forest that lined the end of the bridge and leaned, side by side, on a tree facing the bridge. It started out with the two of them contently watching Lee do the things that made him... well, Lee. But soon it gravitated to a cuddle session. At first, Sasuke held Naruto in his arms, giving the perfect picture of Naruto being uke and submissive. After a while though, Sasuke's arms slid down along with the rest of his body, leading to Sasuke sleeping in Naruto's lap.

The blond stayed awake - sleep never came easy during the daylight - and ran his hands through the dark strands on his lap. The repetitive motion soothed Naruto and apparently also relaxed Sasuke, for he soon fell into a deeper sleep than before.

For a few hours, that was the scene at the bridge. Lee was walking on his hands around the bridge and into the water. To the side, Naruto sat with his back against a tree and Sasuke in his lap, running his hands through the dark hair every once in a while. The sun shone down at the area, bathing everything in a soft yellow light that sank lower and lower as night approached. The sun's strongest blazes had already passed at the time of their arrival and for now, the most volatile natural occurrence was the wind, leaving it to be a peaceful scene.

But as everyone knows, all good things must come to an end and so... it came to an end.

Lee finally finished all three hundred of his laps without any incident, if his shivering was to be considered completely normal. When Naruto saw this, he shook Sasuke awake and both of them dragged the deathly cold boy back to his home. Lee's house stood on the outskirts of Konohagakure; lonely-looking but still managing to have a good cheer, it seemed to embody the boy in their arms.

Arriving at the house and stepping in, Lee shakily offered them refreshments, but after a polite decline, the two boys left Lee shivering in his bed, tucked in by Naruto. And visited by another teenager within minutes.

--------

After leaving Lee tucked in comfortably in his bed, Naruto and Sasuke set out to visit the town. It had been a while... and their fingers were itching to start their plan. Among other things. They walked leisurely to the main part of the hidden village, quietly going over their plans once more.

"Now, Naruto. I'm sure I don't have to tell you this again, but remember, what I do in the village is for the plan. The Plan. So don't-"

"Don't knock the shit out of you if you try to feel me up in front of hundreds of other pairs of eyes? Yeah, I'll try not to."

Immediately at Naruto's tone of voice, Sasuke's blank expression turned into a pout, "Not fair."

"Don't you try that on me again Uchiha Sasuke! I may have fell for that once-"

"Thrice."

"-three times already, but that does not mean I'll fall for it _again!_"

"But Naa-aruu-utoo-o." Sasuke tugged on Naruto's sleeve and despite him having a few centimeters on Naruto, he seemed tinier. Like a child. Like an adorable child whose pout makes you just wanna-

"Argh! Fine! I can't _believe_ I agreed to this! Of all the things!"

By this time, the two teenagers had arrived at the main area of the village and Sasuke's entire demeanor changed. His posture grew stiff, his entire aura turned domineering and the arm he wrapped around Naruto's waist gained a... possessive grip to it.

All in all... Sasuke screamed "seme".

He ducked his head those few centimeters and breathed his words into Naruto's ears, "Don't forget, Naruto. I'll make it... all... worth... it..." His teeth appeared to tug at Naruto's ear lobe and the shiver he felt travel down the blond's spine said enough for him to straighten and glare menacingly at the passersby. In a voice louder than a whisper, but not loud enough for the other people to believe they were meant to hear it, Naruto said, "Now, now Sasuke. There's no need to glare at innocent people. You know I only belong to you."

Inwardly, Naruto was retching at the words. God, he loved the boy, but he wasn't his possession! Sasuke, knowing the thoughts that were running through the other's head, tightened his grip for a few moments in apology before continuing their way to their destination. The one place that was guaranteed to have some kind of response, the one place Naruto was always seen at.

Ichiraku Ramen.

From the place where they stood, going to Ichiraku meant passing through most of the town (if they didn't have to, this wouldn't be much of a story, now would it?), including the Yamanaka's Flower shop.

The opportunities!

Sasuke and Naruto walked casually around the town, as if it was an everyday occurrence to see what used to be the town's greatest rivals/best friends acting like a couple. But after the past month or so, the question that rose in everyone's mind was whether they were **really** acting, as certain sources had discovered, or if they had finally found real love. However, as the couple passed by shops, talked and joked, paused and argued, the routine and the gestures seemed so natural that it was hard to say they weren't a couple.

Until some people thought about it some more and discovered that this was the way the two of them had _always_ been acting.

And then came the series of events that hammered in the fact that yes... the two of them really were a couple. Here are a few examples:

Example 1:

Naruto pointed to a really expensive set of kunai put on display in one of the multiple weaponry shops in the town. Sasuke and Naruto had stood in front of the display cases for a few moments, discussing amongst themselves of whether the set was really worth all the money. After a little bit of arguing, Naruto conceded, depressed for a few moments, before dragging Sasuke off to another display.

The first point of this was that the infamous Uzumaki Naruto gave up to Uchiha Sasuke.

Then when Naruto was suitably distracted by the owner of the shop explaining in great detail the merits of that particular brand of color dye - for future reference for pranks - Sasuke had ducked back into the store to emerge with an intricately designed wooden box. After haggling with the owner on how much the dye really _should_ be worth, Naruto managed to buy two multicolored packs of dye for the price of one and a half.

Naruto went up to Sasuke with that smile on his face - the one that causes everyone nowadays to want to go up to him and hug him and never let go if it weren't for Sasuke's Death Glare - and showed him his new purchases. Sasuke in return gave him an endearing, soft, fluffy smile - that caused a few girls to faint - and presented Naruto with the box he had held behind his back until then. The blond cocked his head in curiosity and when a lock of hair fell across his eyes, Sasuke raised his hand to brush it out of the way again. Naruto beamed at the other before carefully opening the box.

As soon as he saw the contents and carefully closed the box again, he jumped at Sasuke, hugging him till his lips turned blue. Then Sasuke pushed him off, scolding him slightly for that blatant public display of affection before saying that it wouldn't be wrong to assume that he liked the present?

To which Naruto responded with a kiss. With tongues and all that.

For a few moments, there was some fondling going on before the moment was broken by a high-pitched shriek of joy. Sasuke immediately threw a Glare at the offender before grabbing their purchases and ushering Naruto out of the street.

So the second part was the really expensive gift bought by Sasuke the miser to Naruto the... well, to Naruto.

And the third part of this example was the allowance of PDA, a big no-no in the Uchiha book.

And then there's the next example

Example 2:

The two teenagers were finally nearing their destination and stomachs were growling in protest of the emptiness. Sasuke sped up the pace and Naruto kept along with him, until he bumped into a big, burly man twice his size and most likely twice his age. Who was also (conveniently) drunk.

In a completely random display of the prince saving the dams-... erm, the young man in distress, Sasuke made quick footwork of the drunk man before grabbing Naruto possessively and bringing him safely to Ichiraku Ramen.

But not before...

Not before...

Not Before...

(Don't you hate me?)

The green-eyed monster reared its ugly head - so quite obviously, it wasn't Gaara, since Gaara has a very pretty head - and attacked Sasuke. Jealousy rampaged through his very blood, through his very blood-red Sharingan when he saw someone fondle **his** Naruto. He had stepped to the front of the counter to place their orders while Naruto sat at the end of the counter of Ichiraku Ramen when some idiot brushed by Naruto "accidentally" brushing his hand against the blind's posterior.

And what a lovely posterior it was.

But that was not what had enraged Sasuke, oh no, it was the fact that Naruto seemed to have not realized that the gesture was more than an innocent accidental brush on the other participant's part. So when the guy placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder to apologize, he only smiled a bright smile and said that it was alright.

With that, Sasuke leaped over the horde of people to pummel...

Okay, he didn't do that, he just snapped his fingers and made everyone look at him in his awesome aura. When he had everyone's attention, he first Glared at the offender and said in a deep, scary voice, "Naruto is mine." And then did that little growling thing semes always seemed to like to do.

So the first and only real point in this example was that Sasuke was possessive of Naruto in a way that goes way, way beyond the normal limits.

And then we come to the part where...

We tell you the truth.

This is not to say that the events mentioned above did not occur. No, that would be blatant lying, and authors would _never_ do that -cough- It is simply that the observers of the past examples have heavily biased points of view. As such, we believe that it is imperative that we give you the truth. Where Naruto and Sasuke did not suddenly jump into their roles of uke and seme respectively, because really, where's the fun in that?

So, the truth:

The truth is that in Example 1, the kunai set that Sasuke bought for Naruto was actually pre-ordered and meant for Naruto's birthday after a bet that was made a few months prior. Basically, Naruto could not eat Ramen for an entire week and could not even _think_ about mooning over Sakura.

There's the thought here that Sasuke had already known of his feelings towards Naruto at that point, but that should be pushed aside, never to be discussed again.

And so, the extremely expensive gift was not bought on a whim, nor was it really that expensive since Sasuke had, quite intelligently, pre-ordered it when it was at the introductory sale price. Which also explains Naruto giving up, since the whole thing was planned out anyway.

The PDA... was not planned out. But hormonal teenagers will be hormonal teenagers and having a tongue stuck into your mouth in a most extremely erotic way will cause just about everyone to forget about that fact that they were in public. And even if they didn't... what sort of sane person would _stop_!

And we move onto Example 2, in which Naruto was blatantly saved from being molested by a big, burly, drunk man. The truth was that Naruto was so pissed off at having to pretend to be a beyond submissive uke that he was ready to kill anybody who crossed his path. Which Sasuke knew and so saved the big, burly, drunk man from being beaten to death by the "uke" in the relationship.

Now the jealousy in Ichiraku... wasn't really there at _that_ specific point. Sasuke was more or less too amused by the image of Naruto acting innocent to even think about being jealous. The tightening fist that was hidden at Naruto's side probably helped. At which point Sasuke decided to save the offenders ass by snapping his fingers and bringing everyone's eyes in the small place to him. The glare was completely genuine, but the statement of Naruto being his was more or less Sasuke's way of pushing the blond's limits.

Which he did quite well.

Of course, things never did like to go exactly as planned as Naruto staged his little revenge right then and there.

His revenge?

He turned utterly, totally, completely, perfectly, unconditionally, undividedly, wholly, absolutely, comprehensively uke.

So at the moment that Sasuke ended his little growl, Naruto had managed to plan out his whole revenge on the spot in a speed that he could only do when creating pranks or that last measure against an enemy. He brushed off the edges, shined the surface and brought it out to life.

He bounded over to Sasuke's side and clutched at his sleeve. "Sasu-chan? Why is Sasu-chan so angry? Did Naruto do something wrong?" For a moment, Sasuke stared incredulously at the blond boy clinging to his sleeve before he winced almost imperceptibly. Almost, as Naruto saw it and smirked inwardly. Ah... he had such a smart boyfriend, he already knew what Naruto was trying to do. And like the smart boy he was...

He freaking twisted the whole thing around.

"No, Naru-chan. You didn't do anything wrong. I just got angry because... Naru-chan belongs to me and only I should be allowed to touch him. Because I love you very much, don't I?"

_'Bite me, bastard',_ was the thought running through Naruto's head, but outwardly he beamed and hugged Sasuke tighter. "Yes, and Naruto loves Sasu-chan very much too! That's why Naru-chan promised Sasu-chan that he would behave and he wouldn't bother Sasu-chan because bothering Sasu-chan isn't good. Is Naru-chan bothering Sasu-chan?"

Sasuke gritted his teeth, but it unnoticeable to everyone except, once again, Naruto. In the softest voice he could muster in the situation, he said, "Of course not. Naru-chan can never bother Sasu-chan, because Sasu-chan loves Naru-chan and no matter what he does, he'll never get angry."

_'What the hell? Now I'm starting to refer to myself in third person too!'_

"That's good." And with that, Naruto smiled at Sasuke. The Smile that melted everybody's hearts. The Smile that every uke had to defeat their seme whenever they wanted them to do something for them. The Smile that Naruto had practiced on Iruka - not that it worked very well... they were the same type... - and Sasuke. The Smile that Naruto sometimes cursed himself for having - it was so... uke- but at times like these, congratulated himself for mastering. For when he smiled, all those who could see it sighed in the cuteness that was the uke smile. The uke smile that brought bliss to all who saw it and turned some people's knees into jelly and even more hearts into mush.

Sasuke, the target of the smile, tried to resist it with all he had. The hatred and anger that he nurtured during his childhood years seemed to have abandoned him however, for it seemed that any defense he used to have against this kind of smile had already been destroyed by the executor of the smile.

_'Damn him!'_

But he was unable to resist any longer and the last of his mental defenses clawed at Naruto's image, only to be defeated by the similar smile that was appearing on Sasuke's face.

At the sight of the smile, Naruto was taken back. He hadn't expected Sasuke to smile _back_ at him! But still, something in Sasuke's smile... The grip that Naruto had on Sasuke's arm loosened and the two of them turned their faces to each other. They inched closer and closer, the smiles on their faces slowly falling away, their eyes seeing only the other.

Their lips were mere centimeters away from each other, their hearts pounded, their palms began to sweat. Their eyelids grew heavy and the two of them moved in closer to...

"Your ramen's ready." The cheery voice of the owner of Ichiraku sounded out, drawing multiple groans of disappointment from the crowd that had started to grow inside and outside the stall, while the interrupted couple blushed slightly at the realization of what they were about to do.

Sasuke silently thanked the man for interrupting them before verbalizing his thanks for the ramen. He took the take-out bag in one hand and grabbed Naruto's hand in the other and proceeded to drag both of them outside the stall. He walked through the streets of Konohagakure with Naruto next to him, hands and fingers lightly intertwined. His thumb soothingly moved across the back of Naruto's hands before a slight laugh escaped from the blond. He glanced at him curiously to gain a response of, "Sorry, it was starting to tickle."

Sasuke rolled his eyes and pulled at Naruto's arm. "Whatever, idiot, let's go before the food gets cold."

"Hey! I resent that remark!"

"What? That the food's gonna get cold?"

Naruto lightly "harumphed" before tearing his hand out of Sasuke's. He stood there on the middle of the street and crossed his arms across his chest, tapping his foot against the ground and staring at Sasuke.

They stared at each other for a few minutes before Sasuke sighed and gave up, "Fine, fine, I won't call you idiot anymore - unless you deserve it - now can we get home before the food gets cold?"

Having missed the middle part - or rather, choosing to miss it - Naruto gave a solemn nod, before saying, solemnly, "Good."

And then he ran off yelling back at Sasuke, "Last one to the house has to wash the dishes"

Sasuke blinked in surprise before frowning, "That's not right, you have a head start and I'm carrying the food!" But nevertheless, he started running as well, chasing after Naruto to their house.

Their routine carried on for the next few days. Walking through the town, usually after training, Naruto would give the image of being submissive in the relationship, while in reality, the roles were always up for grabs.

Sasuke continued to act possessive and jealous, although, quite a few times, he didn't need to act.

The image of Sasuke and Naruto walking past the many shops and buildings in Konohagakure soon became a regular occurrence. After a while, the two of them even visited certain people during their "dates". Their classmates quickly got used to the sight of Naruto being submissive and knew to act carefully around Naruto when Sasuke was around. Which was always.

The two of them became the "it" couple in the town. It lived off of the gossip about them, gave scandalized gasps whenever news of Sasuke's jealousy traveled once again, muttered sympathetic words when news of Sasuke's overbearing possessiveness hurt Naruto, tittered nervously when they heard of their fights, giggled and blushed when there was news of them discovered in the midst of a make-out session and sighed in bliss when they gave off the image of a beautiful couple never to be separated.

So the whole town lived in content, knowing that they had a hand in allowing the two of them to live in such joy. They now took joy in their joy, forgetting the reasons of why they hadn't been joyful before. The fact that Sasuke and Naruto were together made all of them relax. The absolute bliss that was always seen on their faces made their hearts throb in yearning, the vitality their relationship held gave the villagers hope.

The plans brewing in their minds would give the village chaos.

The plans which were already well under way, only waiting for the next step to be taken...

To Be Continued...

* * *

**(1)** Idea is courtesy of **_Aimi-chan_**. While this may not have been what she expected, it gave me great joy to write this rambling that eeked out of my fingers in less than five minutes. Reading it over... its so freaking corny... and Lee-like. Don't you agree? Oh and the idea was that Lee would be supporting Sasuke and Naruto's relationship, and would accuse people of not supporting them and is about to punish them (in here, in the form of a long speech) only to realize later that they're all gone. 

**QY-** 13 pages. 13 freaking pages. 6 of them took me over a week to write and the rest took me 3 hours. Tch. If you spot any glaring grammar/spelling errors and/or typos, feel free to tell me. And as I've also discovered something freaky happened when I uploaded this, apologies for any blurring between speech.

As to the pairings question, I have more or less solidified the _ending _pairings. If any of you have any **major** problems with any of them, kindly inform me. And when I say major, I mean the sight of it makes you puke, otherwise, I won't do anything. So here they are: Sasuke/Naruto, Kakashi/Iruka, Kiba/Hinata, Neji/Lee, Shikamaru/Ino, Shino/Sakura.

In other words... the original pairings. Only... there's a lot more plot thingies involved now...

And since we're on the topic. There will be, unofficially, three endings to this story. The original (which is the reason for my very first author notes for DR), the second one which I cooked up when I felt devious and the last one which I made after a conversation with Seito that reminded me of something. So "Owari" will appear three times, do not be shocked about this. You can choose which one you like best and if I write enough, I'll give you an explanation at the end of each "Owari" about why I originally had that ending and then changed it.

I wonder how many people just read that?

Written: 2/1/05- 2/13/05

Edited: 4/27/05


	11. Matchmaking and Making Out

**Disclaimer: **See past Disclaimers.

**QY:** The lateness of this chapter is so appalling that I have nothing to say for myself. And anyway, if you cared that much, you would've read in my bio that it was a combination of school and family problems, so I couldn't really help it... much. Just a note, the responses were made four days after I posted the last chapter and I added them as it came. So comments may be... different.

Another note, as of April 27, I edited all of the previous chapters; most of the typos/technical errors should have been corrected. But I'm not perfect, so there's probably a few things left... The most I actually edited is that I changed around a little section from the end of chapter 4 to the end of chapter 5. This means that instead of the teacher/mentor-student meetings being a sort of a flashback, it just takes place after Sasuke and Naruto gets jumped. Since I did this, that means the only flashback in this story exists in the three chapters that goes back to tell the story of the four days. If anyone's confused, or just want to ask questions, feel free to e-mail me, or send an instant message on AIM, or leave a comment on the latest lj-entry. Everything is available on my bio. Right, you can read the new stuff now.

**_Warning:_** There is a reason why this story is **_now rated M_**. There's a lot more innuendos and such and (still amateurishly written) plot-less sexual situations straight ahead and if you just wanna skip that part, you can skip the scene in between the first two dividers. And just in case... yes, it _is_ now considered to be yaoi. Softcore, but still yaoi.

**Review Responses:** (This chapter will take me some time, so, alphabetical order! And it means everyone gets a response, so be patient. Or just scroll straight past it.)

**_Aimi-chan-_** Nah, it's not amazing, it's more like it took me time to fully plan out the ending. Now the only thing left to do is getting there. Your contributions are great. Btw, I'm using the double revenge idea XD I couldn't resist. I'm glad you liked the uke thing O.O You've maimed someone? (But yeah, the smile would've definitely helped.)

**_Aurum-_** -beaming grin- Qian-chan is also glad that she's made Au-chan smile and refer to herself in third person. Qian-chan firmly believes that Iru-chan and Naru-chan are the same type in certain moments. Qian-chan would be glad to die in Au-chan's hug. (After Qian-chan has finished DR because she is sure some people will revive her just so they can kill her again for dieing.)

**_Azamaria-chan-_** My life's goal has been achieved! Laughter has been created! Eh, Neji/Lee, what can I say, my mind's stuck on the yaoi-channel. XD I'm glad you love this story and I only hope you didn't literally sit by your computer and wait. -sheepish grin- Thanks for the luck.

**_evvy-_** The one thing that I'm sure of is that it will be SasuNaru. In the end. -cough- Some things before it may not make you so happy.

**_ewyounerd- _**Yay! Tati! And what do mean _finally?_ Yes, jealous Sasuke is something that shall always exist. Really? You like my Lee? That's cool. I'm not too sure about het goodness as I've never written it before... And Shino/Sakura was from a fic I read. I shall try to make it work out good. Whoo! Someone actually wants the Neji/Lee-ness! Sexual tension is almost as good as the actual thing. XD Chocolate syrup cannot be compared to the powder, it's leagues apart.

**_ghostninja85- _**If that was a joke... alright, it wasn't that bad, not much anyway. Over-uke Naruto scares me, so I will never do that to him. I try to make it a point to make that part of Naruto stay true, if nothing else. Fwha! Disastrous is right -evil laugh-

**_GreenWindOfFire-_** This is where the guilt overwhelms me about not updating. XD Thanks for reviewing.

**_Gonrie-_** It's great that you thought it was great. Here's to hoping you'll love it more!

**_Half-Devil-_** Mwahahaha... Curiously, I always ask people where they live so that I know what time they are at compared to mine. And yes, I understood your reason. Don't worry about not reviewing every chapter. Just do it once in a while so I know you're alive. XD

**hujin-** Your pain rather gladdens me in this weird roundabout way XD Seriously though, thanks for the comment. I'm ecstatic that my attempt at humor has succeeded.

**_Joonie-_** I didn't quite realize this is an AU, but it is.. isn't it? Thanks for saying it's one of the best. And the part where you confused yourself? Don't worry, my mind breaks down if I think too hard on it. Thanx for the watch!

**_kawai kitsune- _**I'm rather disappointed that so few people see the potential in Neji/Lee. But I appreciate your opinion and really appreciate your comment. Half a year ago (or more) Lee/Sakura was my main het pairing. But I've since then seen the light. Lol, you may not see it that way though. Don't worry though, no matter what happens (keep this in mind) SasuNaru will always prevail and lord over everything else! -insane chuckle-

**Kit-** First off, thank you and I'm glad the idea appeals to you. The thing is, it used to be Lee/Sakura before it became Neji/Lee. But because you so politely told me (and because compliments will get you everywhere) I'll make sure it's not **too** prominent. But it is a part of the plot... and you might hate me after the next few chapters...

**Ly-**-hugs- Only.. one thing... Neji/Gaara? Eh? Hehe, but I'm glad you like this story.

**_Ly Mizukage- _**Yay!

**_M-G8-_** I'm sorry I killed your penname, but it was necessary. And thank you!

**Marcus-** I actually had an email written to reply, but it got bounced. The general gist of it is that I'm going back to edit all my chapters, hopefully it will help. And since I'm planning my chapters now, flashbacks will come to a minimum- lack of planning is why the flashbacks existed... The make-out scenes were interesting in what way? -nudge nudge-

**_moonep-_** I'm glad you loved the chapter. And I'm surprised you never learned what uke and seme meant. But I'm glad to have been a help. Nice? I'm trying to have a good impression so you can leave more reviews, lol. As to marrying my stories... I'm afraid you'll have to wait until they're of age. Most of them are only a year old and this is only 10. Pedophile. XP Joking, joking.

**_Night-Owl123-_** Here it is! Not soon at all... And the fact that you read it makes me feel not so silly. Thank you!

**_Noniechan-_** -insane laughter-

**_nor-ai-_** Neji/Lee used to be extreme to me... What can I say, I've got a (extremely) flexible mind. But I'm glad you won't mind. And as I said up there somewhere, it won't be too prominent, so you can squint your eyes and just pass right by it. Mostly. Possibly. -smile-

**_Nuppu-_** I guarantee you that you won't think three endings are nice when you read the first two. Aw, thanks for the compliments. And you're right, even if my writing wasn't too good... the pairing will still keep a lot of people here.

**_Puchu-chan-_** I swear, that wasn't meant to be a cliffy! It wasn't! It wasn't! I do know what crack fics are, wrote one actually, didn't quite think this was one. But now that I think about it... O.o It kinda really is, isn't it? I'm so... glad that you died in the amazing-ness of the fic. Haha, you're in luck, I actually really started to work on this the day you reviewed. (And didn't finish till a long time after)

**_quaebah24-_** O.O -scared- Here's your make-out sessions. Don't hurt me!

**_QuestofDreams-_** Yeah... weren't they great? I had this shocked look on my face when I first thought about it. Then I called myself brilliant, teeheehee. Aw... yes, you should write humor, angst bad. Yeah... "happy time" kinda creeped me out XP

**_Seito-_** I refuse to take the title. And I'm glad you liked, really glad. Please, feel free to take it and use it on them. And remember to be careful not to suffocate the chibis.

**_Shi Rurouni of the Aphrodesiac-_** Wow... I don't know where to start with your review but... thank you for all the comments. And the KakaIru? Showing up either at the end of this chapter or in the next, so don't worry. And what do you mean spelling errors! I understand punctuation errors, but... c'mon! I spent all of 4/27 re-reading the entire series! Nooo...! Ugh, I can't believe I actually beta for people. I suck. Anywayz, I sympathize with you on the book thing and the naughty images. It takes great effort to move past certain parts on my chapters. XD Thanks for reviewing this **and** a few of my other stories. I really appreciate it. P.S. Lee-sama rocks my socks.

**_sodesne- _**Thanks XD

**_Tsubaki-chan_**- Yeah, this is the real 11. SasuNaru actions rule! And yaoi fan-girls add more to the plot than bashing fan-girls could ever do. I'm glad you like this. And I bow down to your Roy/Ed story, _Caught_. And your SasuNaru series.

**_tsuki-chan10- _**You're in luck, for you, this is update soon. Heh... T-T But thanks for reviewing!

**_Ulitheal-_**O.o No! No begging! Get up, get up! Here it is! Please, get up! Lol. Your reviews... end so abruptly, it makes me blink and go "Uh?" Heh, but I'm glad you liked (the one-shot).

**_Young Sasuke- _**Your comments... make me ego big. I was trying to make the world prosper... it didn't happen. -cries-

**_Yuen-chan-_** Whoo for Yuen-chan! Erm, I'm sorry I updated before you could review? O.o? Lmao, a carrot outfit? I've always wanted my own personal mentally disturbed cheerleader. Heh, life is beyond grand.

**Before going on, I would just like to thank all those people who commented on the pairings. Especially those of you that didn't like one of them (mostly Neji/Lee). I am grateful that you will continue reading without complaint. You guys are the best.**

**With that said, 211 reviews for 10 chapters! Hell, _211_ reviews! You guys are totally awesome! Y'all deserve strawberry Pocky! Or Oreos, if you like them better. **

**Time to read on and widen your eyes (in horror) at the attempt of a sex scene! **Or just completely bypass the scene in between the first two dividers.

(4 pages of rambles... I'm updating on time now just so I don't do this to you guys...)

* * *

Delicious Revenge - Chapter XI - QianYun 

_**Matchmaking and Making Out**_

It was a brand new day.

A new day where the sun was shining a bright yellow. A new day where the sky was the kind of blue that made you want to just snatch it down and smack it on a canvas. A new day where there were fluffy white clouds that made you think of cotton candy. A new day where the birds were chirping in a quiet sort of way that told everyone that the squirrels were not up to their usual tricks yet. A new day where the breeze was low, but warm when it came. A new day where everything felt as if it would all work out, quite obvious from the fact that your favorite song is playing on your new radio-alarm.

A new day where the perks of having your boyfriend live with you really hit.

As was quite indicative by the moans and pants heard from the current Uchiha house, from the current Uchiha heir.

Those moans and pants grew in stages. It had started out quiet- only the remnants of a dream that had yet to let go. But slowly, the boy's senses tingled in pleasure; sparks ran up and down his spine.

It was a new day, alright. It most definitely had to be, if the tongue trailing down his neck was any indication at all. He didn't quite want to wake up though, quite certain that it was all just a dream. However, persistent hands danced on his skin, brushing by erogenous zones he never knew he had. And with that, Sasuke's eyes opened in mid-moan to see a blond head moving its way down his body.

* * *

(Pointless sex-related scene. Don't read if you don't feel like it. Scroll stright to the next divider.) 

The sight too tempting, Sasuke felt himself get more aroused. For a moment, he feebly wondered if he should push the other away- it was still a bit too soon, wasn't it? But the thought was banished when the blond head raised to reveal Naruto's face.

Upon which an extremely smug fox-grin lurked. Naruto's hair was more disheveled than usual and his blue eyes gleamed with a hidden spark. Or not so hidden, as Sasuke was able to identify it- after a pause, that is. It wasn't too hard to read the seductive mood the other was in. Dark pink lips parted slightly to exhibit a writhing tongue, occasionally peeking out to lick at the lips. And then they were parted even further to allow the sound vibrations to escape.

"Good morning, Sasuke-chaaan," purring his words, it seemed obvious that Naruto was feeling rather proud and satisfied.

Struck momentarily speechless, the pale-skinned boy could only gape at his tanned counterpart. Taking it as a good sign, Naruto grinned once more and crawled up Sasuke's body so that they were at eye level with each other. He dragged his hands along the boy's chest as he did so, softly caressing the skin, teasing his sides. They stared at each other in the morning light before Sasuke blinked and attempted to form a response. But none was forthcoming as he was stopped by the luscious lips that descended to settle upon his.

Like all the other kisses they shared, it started out chaste, a mere meeting of lips to lips. Then Naruto nudged against Sasuke, poked out his tongue and licked at the other's lips. Finding resistance, the blond grinned to himself before moving his right hand to that spot on the lower right of his left ribs. A gasp escaped the dark-haired boy and Naruto took his chance in claiming the opened mouth.

Taking his time, Naruto leisurely explored Sasuke's mouth, taking care to delve into the warmth and inspect every spot in the previously inaccessible area. He delighted in every moan escaped and basked in the glow of success as he heard every whimper Sasuke made as he moved his tongue out of his mouth.

It was addicting, the noises that came out. Those little behind the throat vibrations that he never heard from Sasuke, but mentally agreed that they were the most erotic noises he had ever heard.

Soon, however, the need for air grew as they had yet to learn how to breathe through their noses while kissing and the blond resorted to leaving the delicious mouth for the salty taste of Sasuke's skin. There was a whine of protest before a heated moan filled the room. Naruto took care to encounter every part of Sasuke's face, and that was how he came to realize that the area right at the end of Sasuke's right eyebrow was highly... reactionary. A lick there caused Sasuke to thrash beneath him, hands coming up to press down on Naruto, trying to fulfill the desire for more contact.

Naruto decided that the teasing had gone on for too long as he felt the hot stiffness pressing against his thigh. Even in such a situation, or perhaps especially in this situation, he couldn't help but feel awed that he out of all people could make the Ice Prince react this way.

It was mind boggling, really.

But insistent hands demanded to have his attention returned to the feast of porcelain skin in front of him. Tongue peeking out in a fox grin, Naruto completely bypassed the entirety of Sasuke's body to pull down the boxers and engulf the ready and waiting member between Sasuke's slender legs. There was an immediate deep-throating and both Naruto and Sasuke froze at the sensation.

For Naruto, there was a raw pain in his throat where Sasuke's length entered, a heavy weight on his tongue, a slightly too large shape keeping his jaws slack. There was a bitterly salty taste at the back of his throat and a thought flashed through Naruto's mind if it was really worth it to give Sasuke a blowjob.

For Sasuke, there was an abrupt change of a slightly cool air on his aching length before it was engulfed in a wet and amazingly hot mouth. He had immediately froze up because the first sensation was too great to ignore and he continued to do so to resist the urge of thrusting up into the hot cavern. But then Naruto unconsciously hummed a little in thought and the vibration caused Sasuke to become wild. A loud groan echoed through the room, breaking any lasting image that still remained of Sasuke and Naruto not doing anything intimately physical. Although, since the nearest neighbor was just past normal hearing capabilities, it didn't matter much.

Unless you included that little blinking green light snuggled into a corner of the armchair diagonally across from the bed and right next to the balcony doors.

It was that very groan that caused Naruto to harden his resolve and place his hands on the other's hips. Slowly, achingly slowly, he lifted his head back up, lightly pressing his lips against the sensitive skin, sending sparks pleasure up Sasuke's spine, making him moan wantonly. Sasuke tried to thrust back into the mouth, but was kept down by the firm grip Naruto's hands had on his lower body. His own pale hands fisted Naruto's blond hair, but he still had enough of his wits about him to know not to pull. For that, Naruto was grateful and he decided to show the dark-haired boy just how grateful he was.

Naruto wrapped his lips under his teeth and swiftly moved back down Sasuke's cock, deep-throating him again. A soft wail escaped the other boy and the blond allowed himself a moment of satisfaction before bringing himself up again.

And so it went, up and down, up and down. Naruto's speed made it dangerous, sometimes his mouth was millimeters away from leaving the flesh, sometimes he went down so far that he almost choked. Without any exception though, every time he moved down, he was treated to the smell of Sasuke- burying his nose into the pubic hair, every once in a while.

Naruto's mouth in its entirety was not the only thing that was busy, his tongue took to licking up and down and around Sasuke's length as Naruto's head changed in elevation. It trailed along the puckered veins and dragged itself along the flesh, occasionally applying more pressure in certain spots and alternately sucking hard. After a while of this with plenty of movements from the boy beneath him and a myriad of arousing noises he popped the cock out of his mouth and proceeded to lick it as if it was his new lollipop.

With less movement overall, Naruto shifted one of his hands beneath him, teasing at Sasuke's balls. Above him, the boy moaned in ecstasy, eyelids growing heavy in pleasure and chest heaving. Sweat rolled off his body, moving along with his excited panting.

Sasuke's hands were ever present in Naruto's hair, alternately gripping and smoothing it, letting the blond know exactly what he liked and what he liked _more_.

Heavy pants grew louder in volume as Naruto brought his hand up to stroke the slick length, bringing out more gasps of pleasure. His hands sped up and he brought his mouth down to the tip of Sasuke's member. He sucked hard and the dark-haired boy's hips snapped up, fists clenching at the sheets under him.

Shock ran through Sasuke's body as a rush of feeling traveled from his privates to his mind. It was an overwhelming touch of pleasure that reached him; a euphoria reached his mind and for a moment he glimpsed heaven before he was brought back down, mentally and physically.

He collapsed back on the bed, his nerves tingling, his limbs shaking. He opened his eyes wondering when he closed them when he felt Naruto crawl up his body. Settling his gaze on the other boy, trying to fight the lethargy creeping over him, he was unsurprised to find the same look a cat would have when it caught the canary. At the sight of Naruto licking his lips seductively, Sasuke pulled him down roughly, bringing his mouth onto the blond's. He forced his tongue into Naruto's mouth, reveling in the moan that came moments later. Sweeping across the area, he encountered a salty bitter taste. With a gasp, he pulled away from Naruto.

"You swallowed it?"

A frown came across the blond's face and Sasuke knew without words that he did.

"I'm never going to do that again."

"Was it really that bad?"

"You want a taste?"

And with that, Naruto brought up a finger to swipe at his neck, where a previously ignored white spot laid. He brought it up to Sasuke's face and his eyes crossed in an attempt to see it.

"C'mon, stick out your tongue." Naruto waved his finger in front of Sasuke, "Or are you too cowardly?"

A scowl immediately found its way onto the Uchiha's face before it lit up with an idea. Before Naruto could do a thing, he was flipped over and with a smirk, Sasuke moved down his body. With a, "I think I'll get my own taste from you," he interrupted Naruto's attempt to talk as it was interrupted by an escaped strangled gasp.

Oh god, this boy was talented.

* * *

Half an hour later, Naruto had curled up on Sasuke, half of his body lying on top of the other boy. His head was tucked into the pale neck and his arm crossed Sasuke's chest to loosely clasp the other's hand. A yawn erupted from the blond before he began to blink his eyes sleepily. Sasuke laid under him, staring unseeingly at the ceiling; a distant look crossing over his face. Naruto propped up his head with his arm and stared at Sasuke staring at the ceiling. This continued on for a while before Sasuke broke the silence. 

"Dobe, I know I'm unbelievably handsome, but that's no reason to stare at me for fifteen minutes straight." Sasuke glanced at him, but looked away moments later. Naruto frowned and a crease appeared on his forehead. "I hope this means you're the bottom if you have the after-sex jitters."

However, Sasuke merely hummed in thought, seeming to have missed his words. But then his eyelids fell halfway and he shifted his eyes towards Naruto and back away.

Now, normally, Naruto was a dense person who never would've thought that that was an intentional gesture of some kind. But four, almost five years of being on the same team as Sasuke weren't for nothing. Sasuke was not a person for meaningless gestures and something as simple as shifting his eyes could mean a great deal of things. Including, but not limited to the 'come hither' look that Naruto decided looked quite unusual, but also very alluring on Sasuke. This time, though, there was no need for him to verbally identify the reason for Sasuke's move; he assumed it to be related to the fans again. As it always seemed to be these days.

The dark-eyed boy's gestures were also enough to tell him what was needed. Naruto wasn't quite so adverse to the thought, of the plan, anymore. It was rather fun, confusing people. So it didn't take much prompting for the blond to slip into a role, one that he had been anticipating filling for some time.

He brushed off the covers that somehow managed to stay on the two of them and climbed onto Sasuke, sitting on his abdomen. He mentally applauded the other boy when a fine flinch and a surprised look crossed his face before settling back into a calm, collected expression. Sasuke shifted his eyes away from Naruto and turned to face his window.

The joy of being a shinobi, you got to learn how to act well along with everything else. And it was that acting talent which Naruto now relied on.

It took more shifting than he expected, but the thoughts soon slipped into his mind easily and with nary a concern, he began the fun.

He was sure that the move was expected, but nevertheless, he tried to subtly apologize to Sasuke. Mostly to avoid hurt feelings. It wasn't like he was scared about what Sasuke would do if it wasn't for the good of the act.

No way, no how was he scared.

Uzumaki Naruto was afraid of nothing.

Which was precisely why he sent a silent prayer to Sandaime to protect him should anything happen to him.

What was this action that caused Naruto to adamantly deny any feeling of fear? Apparently...

After the subtle flinch of fear, Naruto grabbed Sasuke's face and turned it roughly towards him. Growling, he said, "Don't you dare turn your face away from me. Alright? You look at me and only me no matter what the fuck's going on. I don't care who's talking to you, I don't care about your feelings, _you look at me_." The pale boy pressed his lips tightly, but when Naruto brought up his other hand to rest on his neck, he gave a small nod. A brief triumphant look crossed the blond's face before an uncharacteristic smirk settled on his mien.

"Watch what you do, Uchiha. Remember your limits." The fox-bearer's hand tightened on Sasuke's throat for a moment, hard enough to leave small fingerprint bruises. Then he got up and walked out of the room, swaggering with unchecked superiority. Sasuke turned his head to watch the blond go before facing the windows and balcony once more. Tears glistened in his eyes before pale eyelids closed to push them back. His arms curled around his waist and he hugged himself before getting out of the bed.

Shoulders slumped, head down, the dark-haired boy walked like a defeated person, his fighting spirit having been defeated long ago. He exited the room with unsteady steps; the green light on the armchair blinking all the while.

The moment Sasuke was out of view from his room, his stance straightened and he stood against the wall in silence. Sure enough, six minutes later, he heard his balcony door slide open and steps echoing through his room. There was a shifting of cloth before the balcony door slid closed. An eyebrow rose and Sasuke shook his head in disbelief. He tapped his foot for a moment then walked to the bathroom where the shower was running.

Naruto was due for a rude awakening.

At least, he thought so anyway.

--------

It didn't take much for Sasuke to get Naruto to jump out of the shower, tantalizingly naked. Nope, it didn't take much at all. He was such a gullible man, even after all these years. Did he really expect him to get mad about something that was his idea in the first place? That would mean admitting he did something wrong. And the Uchiha _never_ did anything wrong.

Well... close to never anyway.

Still, he had to hand it to Naruto; he did a great job in ignoring the fact that he stood naked, dripping wet in front of his boyfriend that was pretending not to be his boyfriend pretending to be his boyfriend. In other words, he was standing stark naked in front of a hormonal teenager whom by all rights had the freedom to jump him without protest.

Which was exactly what Sasuke did after deciding that his pride wouldn't shatter act the action- it wasn't as if there were any witnesses anyway.

Or wait.. was that a blinking green light he saw at the corner of his eye? But it seemed to be nothing, only the reflection of the flashlight in the squirrel's paws from the window.

Sasuke paused in his ministrations (molestation) to turn towards the window. He raised a hand to rub at his eye, but was interrupted by the growl that Naruto emitted with the loss of the molesting ministrations of Sasuke's hands. Distracted, Sasuke turned back, practically purring at Naruto's response, "Why Naruto! Did you just _growl_ at me?"

At his words, silence stretched between the two before Naruto poked Sasuke's forehead and said, "Don't say stuff like that, it scares me. And what are you stopping for!"

So intent was he in expressing his discomfort in Sasuke's abnormalities, he completely missed the flinch that came over Sasuke at his action. But the dark-haired boy recovered quickly, snatching a random comeback from his thoughts. "If that scares you, I would hate to see what would happen to you if I..." The rest of his words were lost in the thrum of the shower as he bent his head slightly to whisper into Naruto's ear.

"Ecchi!" Naruto punched Sasuke's wet arm, but the flush across his face belied his comment, showing that he was just as perverted as his counterpart.

Sasuke smirked, success glowing in his eyes, "It's not like you haven't thought of it before." A scowl crossed Naruto's face and he said, "I have not-," but his words were lost in a moan when Sasuke sucked at Naruto's right ear lobe, slightly massaging it before moving down.

Tanned hands moved up to grab pale biceps and moans resumed echoing through the Uchiha residence.

"Sex addict, that's what you are. A complete sex addict!" A breathless Naruto spoke, trying to climb out of the bathtub, and subsequently, Sasuke's arms.

"You can't really call me a sex addict, since we haven't had sex yet," Sasuke pointed out.

"It's the principle of the matter! And stop groping me, I'm hungry!" The blond whined in earnest, reaching for something to help him escape Sasuke's arms.

**DING DONG**

Saved by the bell.

Unfortunately, Sasuke had been concentrating so hard on keeping Naruto with him, that the bell caused him to start, jerk, and let go of Naruto. As such, it was no surprise that the blond flew head first out of the bathtub and towards the door. Sasuke blinked in surprise for a moment before saying, "If you wanted to get out so much, why didn't you just tell me?" It was rather difficult for the dark-eyed boy to hide his smile when Naruto raised his head off the floor to turn and glare at the other male, growling all the while. He stood up and yanked open the door, muttering "Bastard," as he exited.

"You might want to-" Sasuke's words were cut off by the slam of the bathroom door. He raised his eyebrow at the action and finished his sentence to himself. "You might want to put on so clothes. Or at least a towel..." It seemed to be typical hot-headed Naruto behavior, so Sasuke took his time getting out of the tub. He didn't particularly want to be around Naruto when he finally realized he wasn't wearing anything. Especially since he was heading directly for the front door.

It was only a matter of time...

That time came extraordinarily soon, for moments later, after the sounds of footsteps stopped, and a door was opened, there was complete silence in the house except for Sasuke's shifting. Then a loud slam thundered through the building, almost immediately followed by a loud and peeved voice, "SASUKE!" Having put on a robe, the aforementioned boy poofed in front of the blond, innocently saying, "Yes, Naruto? You needed something?"

He pretended not to notice the bare body in front of him, focusing on the enraged and embarrassed expression on Naruto's face. It was fun, really; teasing Naruto had its perks.

Sasuke seemed to have forgotten the penalties involved. Naruto's payback.

But the payback was to be set aside for now as Naruto started his way up to the bedroom to put on some clothes hopefully ones he recognized. Meanwhile, Sasuke smirked and walked over to the door. Although upon opening it, his smirk was immediately replaced by a scowl.

"You."

Unsurprisingly, the stoic expression on the visitor's face remained unchanged. Even so, it seemed that the lingering blush did nothing to diminish. Calm and unmoved, the visitor watched Sasuke with steady eyes. There was no response from the Uchiha, he appeared quite content to stand at the door in his silk robe with the late autumn wind flinging everything into chaos. Neither of them seemed inclined to look away and it was most likely that if Naruto didn't stumble down the stairs right at that moment finally wearing some of his own clothes - the staring contest would have went on for a long time.

Interestingly, it was the visitor who moved first to attempt to catch the falling Naruto. Sasuke merely rolled his eyes and closed the door before leaning against it.

Of course, not before winking at the cluster of fans to the right of the door. At the scandalous gasps, Sasuke felt oddly pleased with himself. Even more so when he turned back to the hallway, and thus into the living room to see Naruto scold their visitor even while he walked to Sasuke's side.

"Honestly! What the did you think you were trying to do? Saving me! Who do you think I am? Some helpless female citizen who couldn't balance herself after jumping from tripping down a few measly steps? I'm Uzumaki Naruto. U-zu-ma-ki Na-ru-to! Out of all the people, I didn't expect this to come from you, Neji!" Speech finished, he reached Sasuke's side and wrapped his arms around the dark-eyed teenager's shoulders.

There was no response from Neji other than a shift of his features, almost as if something intrigued him, but not quite enough for him to actually speak up. Even so, a glance by Sasuke caused an imperceptible sneer to appear. But Naruto took no notice, having already forgotten the incident and thus brushing off everything else that occurred moments prior.

God bless the simple-minded blond.

"So why are you over here?" It appeared as if it was a change of topic meant to relieve the tension, but in all honesty, it was Naruto forgetting already and asking the most urgent question in his mind. Neji opened his mouth to respond, but was interrupted before he could make a sound. A sudden knock on the door broke their conversation before it even started as both Naruto and Sasuke turned to open the door. The blond draped himself over Sasuke's back, looking very much like a smug and possessive cat. Quite used to the sight, their latest visitor breezed into the house, chattering all the while. The remaining pink-haired member of Team 7 was totally oblivious to the tension that could almost be grasped between Sasuke and Neji. Or it could've been that she knew it very well as she walked straight to Neji - who stood quite patiently at the end of the hallway telling him that he was needed by Gai as soon he was done with his errand.

"Errand? What errand?" Curious, Naruto bounced over to Nevi, eager to hear about anything that could be related to a mission, preferably his.

Almost reluctantly, but not really since Neji was not a hesitant person, the teen said, "Tsunade-sama sent me to inform both you and Sasuke that she wanted to speak with you about something."

"Is that all? She couldn't have sent a genin?" An innocent enough question, if it wasn't accompanied by a gaze weighted heavily with a certain type of disdain.

"It just so happened that I was free, so Hokage-sama asked me. It would not have been polite to refuse."

"Hmm." Like a tennis match, Naruto and Sakura's confused gaze traveled from Nevi to Sasuke. There were some issues going on here that the two of them felt like they should know.

Frustrated by the silence that followed Sasuke's response, if you can call it that, Sakura let out a huff and tugged at Neji's sleeve. Any other person would have been alarmed by his fierce... blank.. gaze, but having spent years on the same team as Sasuke, very little fazed her now. Without further ado, the pink-haired girl left with a cheerful wave, close to dragging Neji with her.

Sasuke would've felt grateful, really, he would! - but the video peeking out of her pocket kept him from feeling so, especially with the label, which he was able to read quite clearly, thank you very much. It would've been rather difficult to miss the neon green label that read, 'S&N's First Time'.

Unknowingly, Sasuke's eyes followed Sakura's retreat from the Uchiha property, so he barely registered Naruto's tugging. Until it became pulling, that is.

"What do you want?" snapped Sasuke, his thoughts were busy centering on what he - they - would do to Sakura. Naruto wasn't a person who took kindly to being ignored and/or rudely talked, so without a moment's hesitation, he pulled at the robe's collar and whoosh! went the only article of clothing covering Sasuke from the world- and the fan girls still hiding out at the bushes.

A moment of silence for Naruto as he is about to die now.

--------

It took a fight, some time, a bit of food, and some messed up making up before they finally left the house. (Apparently, in Sasuke and Naruto's relationship, a long round of insults constituted as apologies...) The walk itself was short as Sasuke began running half way there and the blond felt compelled to compete with the other's speed. Which explained why the town saw a blond blur followed by a jogging Sasuke heading towards the Hokage mountain. Which also explained why Naruto burst into Tsunade's office without pausing and panting heavily while the dark-haired teen strolled in calmly.

It was fortunate for Naruto that Tsunade had stepped out since Sasuke decided a panting and tired Naruto was suddenly very attractive (teenagers... everything turns them on) and pushed him down onto the floor for a moment of sexual harassment. Of course, that's only if Naruto's protests were actually made in earnest... which they probably weren't.

_Un_fortunately for them, they were interrupted by a rapid series of clicks coming from the door. Sasuke lazily looked up while Naruto tried to tug his shirt back down to see Tsunade's face hidden behind a professional camera. One of those that took about 5 frames each click. (Which meant a lot of money for Tsunade. If she managed to develop them, that is. It didn't seem likely.)

It only took a few moments for Naruto to recover, yelp and roll Sasuke over in an attempt to reach the camera. A couple of years ago, Naruto wouldn't have been able to grab the camera as Tsunade held it above her head. But those years have passed and it was simple for the blond to reach out and pluck the camera of of Tsunade's hands. Except for the two fingers aimed at Naruto's forehead. As it was always said, Naruto and Sasuke were the two best overall shinobi (except for Naruto's non-existent genjutsu), but in a fight with only one ability, such as strength or speed, there were people who could beat them with nary a sweat. Tsunade and her brute force was one of those in the category.

So, how to take the camera?

"Hey! Old hag, if you don't give me the camera, I'll tell everyone about those books you have in the second drawer up from the floor of the desk nest to the bookcase which is all about-"

Flick. Bam.

Blackmailing Tsunade apparently didn't help as Naruto was left to pick himself up after flying into Tsunade's chair and desl. There was a childish look of hurt on Naruto's face that almost broke Tsunade's resolve.

Almost, but not quite.

"You should get up, Sasuke, and comfort that brat of a lover of yours."

"I'm afraid, Tsunade-sama, that that brat of a lover as you call him, doesn't take too kindly to be comforted."

"Hmm?" A contemplative look crossed Tsunade's face. "Interesting. I would've thought that as the bottom of the relationship and with the way you've been acting..."

"You of all people should know that even if Naruto was submissive to me," here, Sasuke walked over to the now-upright blond and cupped a hand under his chin, "he's still Naruto." At this, a wolfish grin crossed the shorter youth's face.

"Damn right."

The busty Hokage rolled her eyes at the theatrics of her two shinobi and calmly walked to her seat, dodging all of Naruto's attempts to take the camera.

"Now, as you should know, I sent Neji to get you guys because I wanted to speak to you. And don't you raise that eyebrow at me, Sasuke, I know I'm speaking the obvious." She turned from her position at the bookcase to face the two youths, finding both of them in slight surprise. "I didn't become Hokage without having honed skills. Which conveniently brings me to the reason you were brought here."

Tsunade took a breath as if she was ready to launch into a long narrative. But nothing came and as expected, Naruto became impatient. "So what's the reason? Don't just leave us hanging, 'baa-san." The Hokage's lips twitched at the title, but she waved it off with little thought, "Haven't you heard? Patience is-"

"A virtue. Blah, blah, blah. I don't need a lesson in morality. Get on with it." Slightly startled at Naruto's unusually extreme rude manner, she retaliated by saying, "Do you have somewhere to go, Naruto? Perhaps back," she paused and made a vague gesture, "home so that you can continue where Sasuke left off? I'm sure there's a lot of sexual frustration building up right with your boyfriend standing right next to you and looking so hot too."

Despite the fact that Naruto had been with Sasuke both officially and truthfully for several months, it still unsettled him to hear such comments and a red flush rose on his face. "You perverted old hag! No wonder you were teammates with Ero-sennin! You're a pedophile as well!"

"I was merely saying that Sasuke looked warm in his outfit, I see nothing perverted about the statement." A smile lit up Tsunade's face, smug at getting one up on Naruto.

"Eh?" Naruto turned to look at Sasuke who was currently sitting in the one available guest chairs, idly flipping through a book. A book which he quickly snapped shut and slid back onto Tsunade's desk when he noticed he was at the center of attention. A blink and he slowly asked, "May I help you?" Giving his boyfriend a once-over, Naruto put on a bewildered face and asked, "Aren't you _hot_ in that thing?"

"I'm hot in everything, I do realize." A smirk settled on Sasuke's face before he chuckled and said, "I'm not wearing anything under this."

It was really such a wonder that he wasn't hot, since although fall was ending, the sun was still strong and wearing a wool sweater and long pants certainly couldn't be very comfortable. However, at his words, Naruto reached over and thrust his hand into Sasuke's shirt, feeling the pale boy's chest. "Hmm, you're not. And you're not hot or sweating either."

"Alright, alright, I don't want anymore molesting in the office. Let's get back to the point." As swift as Naruto stuck his hand up Sasuke's shirt, he took it out again and exclaimed, "Finally!"

"Brat."

"Old hag."

"Do you guys want to be alone? I can step out, I don't mind."

"Ha. Ha. Very funny."

There was a pause in the conversation as Naruto took a seat on Sasuke's lap (he had broken the other chair when he flew into it after Tsunade flicked him) and Tsunade shuffled some papers around. Finally...

"So here's the thing. I've been hearing that some of your skills have gotten rusty and as luck would have it, I have a perfect mission for you guys to take to brush up your abilities." At her words, both Sasuke and Naruto were caught between being indignant at the jibe at their skills and being excited that they had a mission after so long. In the end, they just asked for the details.

"I would love to tell you the details, the only problem is that I have a rather small amount."

"What? Isn't it your responsibility to make sure the shinobi under your command don't go off onto some stupid suicide mission? What if that's what it turns out to be?"

Tsunade looked down at the papers in her hands and looked back. Dryly, she said, "I don't think that's a possibility." Pulling at Naruto's shirt, Sasuke restrained the curiously active blond- who attempted to leap over the desk and choke his Hokage and said, "Can you inform us of the details you do know that makes you so sure of that?"

A grin appeared on her face and she handed the papers to Sasuke with a cheery, "Sure!"

Both teens narrowed their eyes at her and then read the paper in front of them. Seconds later, an angry yelp echoed through the tower. "You want us to WHAT!"

"Oh, calm down, it's not that bad."

"Not that bad! You want us to-"

"It's not like you haven't done it before."

"I haven't!"

"Oh. Well, Sasuke has. He can coach you along."

"Coach me along? I don't need nor want him to _coach me along_ in something like this! What exactly went through your mind when you accepted this mission?" When Tsunade opened her mouth to answer, Naruto scowled and said, "Never mind, I don't want to know. But why us?"

"I told you, you need to hone your skills more-"

"Like this?"

"Especially like this. And you guys are the only ones available who can do this the best. I'm afraid you'll have to accept this mission."

"Say something, Sasuke." Naruto pleaded. The dark-haired boy shrugged and said, "There's nothing more to say, she's already decided."

Naruto looked between Tsunade and Sasuke before huffing in disgust and getting up and leaving. Sasuke followed soon after and Tsunade was left in her office smiling.

"This. Will be fun."

--------

"Your reaction went a little overboard, don't you think? It's not that horrible of a mission. Much. I've done it before, it's not too difficult. Why-"

"Not that difficult! And why haven't you ever told me you accepted a mission like that? I though we were friends."

Sasuke gave a long-suffering sigh, walking down the streets with Naruto towards the training field. "I never saw a point in telling you. What good does it do?"

Naruto scowled at Sasuke's words- he knew they were true; knowing that Sasuke had previously accepted a mission like this wouldn't have done anything. Still, it would've been nice to know. Despite that it would've had little impact on their relationship, it was nevertheless something he didn't know about Sasuke.

The thought that he had yet to tell him about the Kyuubi occurred to him, but he brushed it off.

Reaching the field, Sasuke turned to Naruto and tugged at his arm. He brought up a hand to settle upon the blond's cheek and rested it there. He then brought his head closer to him and placed their foreheads together. They stared at each other for a few moments before Naruto sighed and closed his eyes.

"Fine, you win. But is there anything you want to tell me before I find out the hard way?"

A smile settled on Sasuke's lips before he replied, "Well... there are a few things you should know. Including the fact that I would love to see you naked and under me, screaming in pleasure." Instead of the blush Sasuke had come to expect, Naruto merely grinned and said, "You'll just have to wait for that. In the meantime, what are we doing?"

Stunned at the implications of Naruto's words, it took him a while to recover and answer. "I was thinking about training a little in chakra control, since we're going to need it for the mission, and starting the second part of the plan."

A blank look crossed Naruto's face, "We have a second part?"

Sasuke blinked.

Blinked once again.

Took a step back.

All the while donning a look on his face that read somewhere along the lines of, "OMG, my boyfriend's an idiot."

At least, it would on anyone else, at this point, it was a regular expression for Sasuke.

Okay, it's an over-exaggeration. But Sasuke was, at this point, speechless. So he went for the closest form of speech he could get to.

He walked back to Naruto and slapped him upside the head.

"Ow! What was that for?" Naruto rubbed his head, Sasuke had a heavy hand.

"I was attempting to knock some sense into you. I should've remembered that the only thing that would happen is you losing the last few brain cells you have left."

"That wasn't funny four years ago. It still isn't."

Sasuke sighed in exasperation, "Yeah, I know. But it's my way of coping."

"Coping? With what?"

"Naruto, do you remember that whole conversation we had with Lee and Shikamaru about, oh, I don't know, a month ago?" Naruto nodded tentatively. "The entire talk was about our plan. Our multi-part for revenge that was going to take _months_ to finish."

"I remember that. I still don't remember the second part."

"Naruto! Why- Hmm." Sasuke paused for a moment and looked out into space, thinking about the day of the meeting. He clearly remembered Naruto being there for all of the meeting, but there seemed to be a blank spot in his memory for when they were talking about the second part of the plan. Why then, did he remember what it was?

Naruto had been watching Sasuke the entire time, so he was startled to see a pink flush come over the dark-haired boy.

"Sasuke?"

Slightly startled, he muffled his movements with a small cough before saying, "Right, so anyway, the second part of the plan. We do what everyone else tried to do with us. Matchmaking." The dark-haired boy continued with his narrative about the plan, so Naruto could only wonder in silence about the complete disregard of the issue of why he hadn't heard of it in the first place. Soon, he brushed it off to concentrate on Sasuke's details. There weren't too many specifics that he could see, but it was evident that they had thought up of many possible outcomes and solutions to any problems that would arise. It amazed him sometimes, the extent of Shikamaru's intelligence. Made him rather glad that he was on their side and not anyone else's. Imagine the destruction that could've been brought down upon them if he belonged to an enemy country.

Tuning back into Sasuke's dictation, he was startled to realize that the other teenager had left him and was walking away, towards the field. "Hey! Where are you going?" The other boy's hand came up in a wave, "To find someone that would actually listen to me when I talk."

The blond cocked his head in confusion before sighing in exasperation. _Honestly, the boy was so sensitive._ He ran up to Sasuke and cut in front of him, jogging backwards to keep their pace. "Oy, you're not gonna get mad just for something like that, are you?"

"Mad? Over something like this? Never! Heaven forbid if I wanted to my boyfriend to actually listen to me when I speak. What in the world was I thinking!" A dramatic look fell over Sasuke's face, accentuating his annoyance over Naruto's flippant attitude. "You know, if you don't want to do this, all you have to do is tell me. I won't force you." A fierce scowl threatened to make its way to his face, but with the control he perfected in his younger years, he kept it contained within him. At Naruto's bewildered look, Sasuke rolled his eyes and calmed down, "Seriously though, if you don't want to do this, you can just tell me. I know that you're not the type to carry out such a revenge plan. It is a little more than you're used to, isn't it?" A smirk graced his face as he fell into a routine that he was used to. Being bitter about Naruto and his... issues never quite settled with him.

Besides, he was pretty sure there was a part of him that held certain characteristics of Naruto in high regard. Some part... deep down inside. Possibly.

"A little more than I'm used to? Do you realize who you're talking to? The king of pranks! Don't tell me you don't remember all those things I did back in the academy and those couple of years after. Something like this is like an appetizer!" Naruto spoke vehemently, working hard to defend his reputation. _How _dare_ Sasuke say such a thing!_ Naruto was speaking so intently, that he never noticed the smirk that appeared on Sasuke.

So easy to manipulate.

"An appetizer, you say? So then, how about we up the stakes?"

Naruto narrowed his eyes for a moment in thought before saying cautiously, "How?"

"How about..." With growing pleasure, Sasuke sketched out exactly what he was thinking.

* * *

"Ready?" 

"I think so."

"Naruto..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let's get it on with."

"For someone who was calling this an "appetizer", you don't look like you want to do this very much." Sasuke looked over to Naruto, casually taking in his surroundings at the same time. A scowl that looked more like a grimace appeared on Naruto's expression, "Yeah, well, I forgot about this part."

"Well, suck it up and get in there. It's your turn." He smacked the younger teen's bottom as if it would help to move him. Interestingly, after sticking out his tongue at Sasuke in retaliation, he did exactly that.

"Good luck," wiggling his fingers at Naruto, Sasuke chuckled to himself lightly "This should be good."

_'Okay Naruto, concentrate. You can do this. You know you can. Just act normal and don't think too hard. That's right, just like as if it was any other day...'_

Never one to be nervous for very long, the blond shook off his thoughts and continued his way towards his destination.

Sakura's house.

In his hand, he carried one of those cheesy romance cards a person could find in any bookstore. He walked past a few storefronts and apartment buildings before he reached a nicely decorated house. A soft, muted blue in color, it sported several windows on each face of the house and a decently-sized front lawn. Several different types of flowers grew in a variety of colors. Realizing he had stood upon the path for a while now, Naruto determinedly looked at the front door and walked towards it. Raising a hand to knock at the door, he paused before letting it fall against the door.

Time to face the music.

Whatever that meant.

The door was, unfortunately for Naruto, opened rather quickly, revealing the pink-haired Haruno Sakura dressed in a dark blue outfit. "Naruto-kun! ...why are you here?" Sakura glanced around suspiciously, looking for a tell-tale sign of a prank or something of the sort.

"I'm hurt, Sakura-chan, that you would think so lowly of me." Naruto paused and spoke again. "I am here on a mission. For Lee. Here," he held out a card under her nose, "he didn't want to give you this, so I picked it up and delivered it." At his words a skeptic look crossed Sakura's face. "Lee-kun? Didn't want to give me this? Are we thinking about the same Lee?"

"Why? Is there another Lee that I don't know about?" Looking as if he was really thinking about it, Naruto was silent for a while before saying, "Rock Lee, right? Bushy eyebrows, weird green jumpsuit and an even weirder haircut? Cries a lot in joy? Enthusiastic-"

"Yes, Naruto-kun. That Lee." Sakura rolled her eyes in exasperation and took the card that Naruto held. Before opening it, she glanced cautiously between the card and the blond teen in front of her. Deciding, somehow, that it was safe, she opened it and was greeted with a handful of sparkles and a flowery smell- that of roses, perhaps. She stood at the doorway, reading the writing on the card, expression softening as she went on.

At the change, Naruto's curiosity piqued and he rose on his toes in an attempt to look over the top of the card and read it. Noticing his movements, Sakura closed the card and with a stern expression, said, "Naruto-kun, you know it's impolite to read over a person's shoulder." Before Naruto could say anything, she added, "I know you're not reading over my shoulder, but Naruto, really," she smirked, "It's the principle of the matter."

When Naruto's mouth fell open slightly, Sakura proved that 'Inner Sakura' still existed when she winked and closed the door in his face. Through the door, Naruto head a faint, "You might want to tell Sasuke to get glazed windows. You never know who's watching." A light laugh sounded and footsteps were heard moving away from the door.

Surprise apparent in Naruto's expression, it took him some time to recover and walk back to the place where Sasuke was waiting for him. But step by step, Naruto's prankster mind started to work and provide minuscule details that would make the plan have a higher success rate. Naruto wasn't naturally a very vindictive person, but the constant invasion of privacy was starting to tick him off, and since the perpetrators were his own comrades, the retaliation could only come in the least physically harmful way and the least permanently traumatizing way as well. It still left a wide variety of choices for payback.

This was only the beginning.

A yawn erupted from a still Sasuke a little away from Sakura's house. They – meaning Sasuke and Naruto – had woken up too early considering the hour they had went too bed. He never knew that planning a revenge would take this much thought and energy. Back then, when the only thought was revenge, he never took the time to plan out what he really should be doing. Maybe that was why he still hadn't succeeded yet. Perhaps he should start mapping it out? It wasn't like he had much to do. There was that one mission Tsunade assigned them a couple of days ago, their long plan of revenge for the townspeople, taking care of Naruto... Suddenly, it seemed like he had too much to do. So what about-

His thoughts were abruptly cut off by the appearance of his boyfriend looking oh-so confused and surprised. Right underneath the surprise, though, was the calculating look that Naruto always gained when he was thinking seriously about something that would have been a off-handed thought to other people. Sasuke wasn't sure if he should be wary or happy. But since Naruto had just come from Sakura's house, there was a high chance that he would be able to feel glad.

But it would seem that he would have to wait, since the look on Naruto's face was still predominantly curiosity. It was too bad, he was ready to think up something clever.

"Hey, dobe, what's with the look?"

"What did you write in the card?"

Sasuke was taken back by the direct question and so took his time to answer. "I wrote something anybody would want to read from their crush."

"That doesn't say anything." Naruto squinted his eyes in thought. "Whatever you wrote in there, Sakura liked a lot. I never knew you had it in you, Sasuke."

"I don't have anything "in me"," Sasuke scowled, unwilling to discuss the writing in the card. He didn't like people reading his writings, having been developed under his mother's tutelage; the only reason he wrote in the card was because Lee was a person who would want to make something like that personal. Naruto had proclaimed any message he wrote would immediately lead a person to think of him. With no other person available, Sasuke was left to do it. It didn't mean he had to like it.

"But Sasuke!" When the dark-haired boy only frowned in response, Naruto scowled as well and changed the direction of the conversation; he would get it out from the other teen soon enough. However, a tense silence fell over the two teenagers and they were left to their own thoughts. Standing against the wall of an apartment building, Sasuke became uneasy and snapped out a quick, "Sorry". Wanting to regret the apology, but not being able to in the aftermath of Naruto's bright smile, he took the blond's hand and tugged him towards their next destination.

The Academy.

--------

For the teachers in the Academy, it was a relatively peaceful day; relatively peaceful meaning that there were no injuries other than the normal wounds the students received from practicing throwing projectiles. Relatively peaceful meaning no more than two pranks had been played on someone or another. Relatively peaceful meaning that nothing blew up, except for the homework placed on one of the teacher's desks. Of course, considering that the assignment was to make their own explosion note, it was to be expected.

The teacher was sure that they hadn't asked the students to put enough power in there to blow out the entire front of the classroom though.

In another classroom, Iruka stood in front of the students, sternly glancing around the room as he proctored the test he handed out on certain tactics they had studied for the past month.

One of those tactics included the ability to gain information without anyone else noticing. A bit like the first part of the Chuunin Exam that Naruto-tachi had taken. The only difference was that the information wasn't to be taken from the other students, rather, it was to be taken from their surroundings. Taking information from other people would've been a bit too simple for the kids in his current class. Even Iruka knew that copying answers off another person's sheet was one of the easier things to do. The only crippling aspect of it was being able to keep calm enough to do so- cheating was something that had been drilled into people as a bad habit.

Perhaps part of the test was to break a habit? The habit of not cheating?

But not matter how Iruka thought of it, he still couldn't quite understand the exact details of that year's test. Although he would have to say that the last question was a good one. A shinobi didn't only need the physical ability to do something, they also needed the mental stability to back it up.

However, at this point in the game, in their life, Iruka believed that it wasn't something they had to test just yet. For now, he needed to know their abilities.

To be able to see underneath the underneath. It was what Kakashi always said, wasn't it? Something the greatest shinobi held to. Since Iruka had to test his students on this, it would be necessary for him to be able to do so, right? After all, how else would he be able to make the questions.

As such, it didn't take him long to notice the twitch that one of his students seemed to be developing. Normally a rowdy pupil, Takuya had the ability to focus intently on something if he decided it was worth it. After a few months and tests with Iruka, he had decided that the exams were the one thing he would allow himself to concentrate on. The kid had a lot of potential, he also had a tendency to stop blinking when he took a test.

Something like a twitch would have immediately been stopped; concentration on Takuya's part meant gaining control over just about every function – voluntary and involuntary – that a human body could have. Besides his voluntary movement of writing with his right hand, everything else either slowed or stopped. All except the sudden taps of his left ring finger that occurred exactly every fourteen minutes.

Takuya was tapping his left ring finger every fourteen minutes and five seconds.

Rolling his head as if working a crick out of his neck, Iruka moved his eyes over the corners of the room. Within seconds, he found what he was looking for and he brought his head down once again and smiled. He stepped behind his desk and sat, shuffling around some papers as if he was looking for something. Which he was, and when he found it, there was a soft, "Ah-ha!" and an opening and closing of a desk drawer.

Looking at his watch, he noted the time and announced, "There's five minutes left. If you haven't reached the last question yet, I would advise you to do so soon. I will collect all papers in six minutes. Keep notice of the time and remember that what should be there, won't be."

Finally giving the last clue for the exam, he could practically hear the light bulbs going off in the students' minds. Leaving them to their own devices for the last few minutes, he scooted his chair back a few inches and brought the papers to his lap. Hands moving in a speed that blurred, Iruka looked up only once to sweep his eyes across the room, noting all the different postures of his students.

And there was the other.

Finishing with the papers in his lap, he brought them back up to reveal a paper pagoda with eleven levels. He made another one in a couple minutes and placed it carefully next to the first.

"Alright, time. Fold your test papers in half and label it. As I call your name, hand me the test paper and get something from one of the pagodas." Immediately, a few heads snapped up to glance at him suspiciously. There was a trick in this, they just knew it.

Iruka called up three students at a time, all of them going for a different pagoda. Rarely was only one pagoda emptied and as more and more students left without being harmed in any way, only taking out a piece of candy or something of the sort, the remaining students became less cautious. When he called up Takuya and two other students along with him, one of them that Iruka had taken notice of, he anticipated them allowing the third students to take from a pagoda first before reaching in themselves.

They did exactly as he thought and it was only a simple matter of triggering his chakra to catch the hands that reached into the pagoda. Since Iruka refrained from dismissing any of the students, the twin yelps that came when he trapped the two hands caught the attention of his entire class.

Smiling serenely at the two boys in front of him, he set his chin on his crossed fingers, much like one of his previous students. "The both of you failed the test." He paused at the gasps from the other students; the two that stood in front of his desks were the more able ones of the class; if they had failed, it was likely that nobody else did very well...

"Would you like me to explain why?" Takuya shrugged nonchalantly while the other boy narrowed his eyes at him. "The reason is simple. The two of you still need to brush up on your deception skills. It's no wonder that Hokage-sama assigned you that mission. Sasuke-kun, Naruto."

Murmurs traveled through the students, giving the classroom a façade of a gossiping, tittering central area. They were starting young, apparently.

There was no response from the other boy other than a blink and a 'poof'; after the smoke disappeared, Sasuke stood in its place, looking decidedly bored. On the other hand, Takuya dramatically pointed a finger at Iruka, loudly saying, "How did you see through my disguise! It was perfect! I had to keep still and I know I even tapped the left ring finger every fourteen minutes and five seconds! How!" wailing at the every end, there was also another 'poof' and Naruto stood with his finger still pointing out and still dragging out the end of his question.

Iruka grinned in amusement and replied, "Probably because it's every fourteen minutes on the dot. And before you ask, Naruto, I knew it was Sasuke because no matter what form he's in," he smiled at the older teen, "his posture never changes."

He glanced behind the two teenagers and addressed the students still sitting in their seats, "Those of you still with test papers can come up here and hand them to me. And," he released his chakra and at the jolt of energy, Naruto and Sasuke took their hand back quickly, "You guys can take something from the pagodas as well." After a few moments in which a handful of kids gave in their papers and took their share of the gifts, Iruka dismissed them all to relax in the yard.

Organizing the papers, he ignored his former students for a while before looking up at them, "So, what can I do to help my favorite former pupils? Or did you come here just to take the test for your alter-egos?"

"Aw, Iruka-sensei! Does this mean that I can't just visit you in my free time?" A fox like smile appeared on Naruto's face as he donned his most innocent look- a little too innocent as Iruka smiled fondly and shook his head.

"It's not going to work, Naruto. Try again." He looked steadily at the two teenagers, one dark and one light in color. Naruto started fidgeting under his glance and refused to say anymore.

To make up for it, Sasuke's deep voice resounded through the room, "We wanted to invite you for dinner at our house. To thank you." A small, timid smile lifted a corner of his lips and Iruka was startled to see it.

Startled, but glad. With a wide smile, Iruka agreed. "I would love to have dinner with you guys, but what are you thanking me for?"

"For helping me when I spoke to you a few weeks ago. It really... helped." Inwardly, Naruto cringed, lying to Iruka was always hard, especially when he had felt so disappointed when he had spoken to Iruka before.

"I'm glad I was able to help. When do you want me over?"

"Actually, we were thinking, if you weren't busy, that you could come over tonight." _'Mostly because Kakashi-sensei leaves for a mission tomorrow night'_, Naruto silently added.

The scarred teacher blinked before responding, "It's a bit sudden, but I'm not doing anything special tonight. I hope I won't be intruding."

"You would not be intruding, sensei. We are the ones who are inviting you." Sasuke spoke quietly, assuring Iruka that they wanted him at their house.

"In that case, I'll see you guys tonight. I'll have to finish marking these tests now if I want to get any sleep."

Both Naruto and Sasuke smiled serenely at this. Iruka refrained from raising his eyebrows at their curious actions and shooed them out of the room. _They're up to something. I know it._

_---_

"Iruka-sensei suspects something."

"Of course he does. You have bad acting skills."

Naruto gasped in indignation, "**I** have bad acting skills? What do you think I've been doing for the past month?"

"Do you really want me to answer that question, Naruto?" Sasuke smirked at the answering edged pout on the blond's face. "Forgetting your non-existent acting skills for the moment, did you give Kakashi the note?"

"Yeah, I passed by his house and triggered a couple of traps. What did you write in their that makes you so sure he's going to come?" As Naruto and Sasuke walked from the Academy to the grocer, they smoothed over the last of their planning for the night.

"I wrote something."

"Something! What does that mean?"

A grin, "You want to know?"

"Yes!"

"Ah, too bad then, maybe you can ask Kakashi when you see him. Oh, look! Fresh cabbage!"

"Argh, Sasuke! Stop doing that!" Naruto ran after Sasuke, catching up to him in the store. Although he attempted to get an answer, he was quickly drawn into a conversation about what to eat for dinner.

One thought ran constantly through their minds. If everything went right, Iruka would definitely not be getting any sleep tonight. One way or another.

To Be Continued...

* * *

**QY-** As footnotes irk a few people, I'm just going to write my consecutive thoughts. 

My friends said the scene wasn't hentai enough... Apparently, if I'm going to write about two guys, I have to do them actually going through with the penetration of one of them.

After-sex was used instead of the normal post-coital because I looked it up and... I'm pretty sure none of them have a vagina to insert the other's penis in. Nor did they actually have intercourse anyway...

Ee! It's the attack of Violent-and-Uncaring!Naruto and the appearance of Defeated-uke!Sasuke. Why do I feel as if my story is turning out to be one of those that makes fun of other people's OOC characters?

Oh man, deterioration of my mind leads to Naruto's and Sasuke's deterioration. Sleep-deprivation. I wanted to finish before my Spring Break was over. (4/25-4/29 for me) Wasn't successful, so the two of them suffered for no reason.

There were so many places I could've stopped... but I wanted to actually have a point for the chapter so it went on and on and on and on even though it probably would've been better if I stopped.

Since the ring finger's nerves are directly connected to the middle finger's, it's difficult to control it voluntarily in certain circumstances. For instance, if you place your hand on a flat surface and curl your middle finger towards your palm, you'll find that the ring finger barely moves while the others are fine. This is why I chose the ring finger instead of anything else. Doesn't make too much sense if you think about it, but eh. Takuya won't be talked about anymore anyway. I think. (Btw, who knows where I got the name from? Has the same seiyuu as Naruto. XD)

Pagodas are those towers with the lowest level being the widest and shrinking as it gets higher. There's usually a rather large opening on all four sides of the bottom-most layer. It's an Asian building, mostly found around Buddhist areas and such. A famous one is the one that trapped the monkey king from _Journey to the West_ (the original of _Saiyuki_)in one of the stories. It doesn't actually exist- at least, I don't think so, but it was how I identified it when my friend made a pagoda. So yes, you can make one using paper.

**Ah,** I was determined to finish it today. 28 pages on OpenOffice, 20 pages of reader-friendly pages. I would feel proud, if this didn't take me three months to write. And I mean this literally, for once. I don't think this chapter was up to par, but at this point, it's hard to change anything. So, let's see what happens at the dinner, eh?

And so I know you guys remember me, how about leaving a nice review?

Written: 2/17/05 – 5/4/05


	12. One Step Completed

**Disclaimer:** See past Disclaimers.

**QY:** For once... I have nothing to say, except as always, thanks to you guys for reading and/or reviewing this story. And sorry for the shortness, kind of weird after the last chapter...

**_Warning:_** Kakashi/Iruka-ness in the chapter. You can't miss it. :cough: Sasuke decided he wanted a potty mouth.

**_Review Responses:_** (Alphabetical, cuz dude... school is **over**)

**_AbsurdAnne-_** Dinner's here! Yeah, OOC-ness has a way of getting to you.

**_Aimi-chan-_** Right... the lemon. You'll have to, uh, wait. Ahem, the revenge plot is starting to blossom now.

**_Azamaria-chan-_** The big plan, is big indeed. And to answer your question, they're definitely serious now. Thanks for the review.

**_Chibixholic-_** Hehe, you're welcome. And I'm hoping nobody reports this story, but since the scene is pretty deep into it, I'm thinking it won't be. XD thanks for the compliments. And I'm insulted! You think I can't write good KakaIru? You haven't read my Aftermath story then. :nudge nudge:

**_Daidaiiro-chan-_** :solemnly: It's great to find another believer. Hehe, I hope you enjoyed it.

**_ghotsninja85-_** Once again, thank you for the advice on my writing (and I finally realize why you're so knowledgeable...) I agree, there's a different pace for different kinds of stories. I'll take into account the cross-posting comment. And you're definitely going to see the meat of the plan now.

**_Gravtity's Addicted-_** I'll have to say, your review was absolutely amusing. I would love to comment on everything, but it'll turn out to be _way_ to long. Please accept my comment of 'your review was awesome and made me feel warm inside'.

**_Joonie-_** Responses to reviews are my life. Oo, so happy you liked the role-playing. And don't worry, the mission wasn't described at all. Other couples make this story fill out, no?

**_Ookami-_** The accidental kiss shall forever live on in the memories of SasuNaruSasu fans, as such, there will be _many_ repeats. Thanks for the correction on the quote.

**_Puchu-chan- _**Glad you thought it was so great. And now that it's summer, your demand may come true.

**_RuByMoOn17-_** Awesome. That was the greatest review ever.

**_Seito-_** No.. you weren't hugging them that hard... XD Thank you for saying all of that, and here's the next chapter. I hope it makes Seika mad, lol.

**_Shi Rurouni of Aphrodesiac-_** I thought it was strung out too. Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your comments.

**_SpiritsFlame-_** Lol, here's a bag of Milano to make up for the rotten food.

**_YoungSasuke- _**It wasn't soon, but here you go!

**Thank you all again for reading/reviewing!**

**

* * *

**

Delicious Revenge – Chapter XII – QianYun

Just Like That, **_One Step Completed_**

It took more preparation than Sasuke and Naruto really would've liked, but it was to be expected. After all, they hadn't had any visitors for a while - excluding Neji – so their house was a bit... messy and unkempt. They couldn't really be blamed. The two of them were still just teenagers and who truly expected them to clean the place on a regular basis? Especially considering that the place was exceptionally large despite its deceiving appearances. Besides that, Sasuke's slight anal-retentive manner forced them to clean every space they could see and even some that they could not. There was a corner in the attic – that Naruto didn't even know _existed_ – which contained some rather questionable substances. And oh... he was getting the shivers just thinking about it.

Nasty.

The cleaning portion of getting ready having been finished quickly – being a shinobi had its perks – Sasuke and Naruto were left with a few hours to start and finish preparing the meal they were to present their teachers that evening. All the supplies were ready and waiting on the counters to be chopped up, seasoned and combined in any ways possible to make a spectacularly drool-worthy dinner. But first... they needed to figure out _exactly_ what they wanted to cook. Well, what Sasuke wanted to cook, because just a few minutes in the kitchen with Naruto had determined that while he had the necessary skills to survive, it was nothing to brag about. Particularly when he decided that it was absolutely necessary to poke the durian and wail at the pain that came. Never mind that the spokes of a durian were nowhere near the sharpness of a kunai.

Deciding that having Naruto remain in the kitchen would be detrimental to both of their healths, Sasuke wasted no time kicking Naruto out with the promise that he would get to taste-test everything.

So with that, Naruto was left to wander the house with absolutely nothing to do. **Nothing**. After spending some time lazing on the couch and flipping through the channels – and no, he did _not_ pause on the porn channel – Naruto decided that there was nothing worth doing in the house. **Nothing**. Therefore, it came with little surprise when Naruto thought up to bother Sasuke.

Sasuke, who was in the kitchen wielding hot and pointy sharp things in his hands. Sasuke, who expressly told Naruto that he was not to bother him on the threat of food-deprivation. Sasuke, who was turning around at his approach with a mean look on his face and a butcher knife in his hand.

Never one to be deterred by his boyfriend's action, Naruto nevertheless stood at the doorway and proceeded to whine about his boredom. To which Sasuke snapped and told him to "Run out and play." Like he was a kid! Honestly! The audacity... Naruto went off to do exactly that when Sasuke gripped the blade of the knife and prepared to throw it at him. Now an utterly bored Naruto was let out into the world with no one the wiser.

Having been informed that the dinner would not be ready for another few hours, Naruto took into mind that it meant he had a few hours to wander around town and find people to bother. Feeling vindicated, Naruto sprinted directly to Ino's house, mind set on bothering her for the next few hours.

Fortunately for Ino, Naruto was most decidedly distracted by the appearance of a certain individual... Kakashi! _Ah, now I can ask him what was in the note!_ With that in mind, Naruto (noisily) proceeded to made his way towards the gray-haired man, not bothering to hide his presence, because really, what good would that have done? So it was easy to see why Naruto was startled to see Kakashi had _not_ noticed his presence – indicated by the little hop and skip Kakashi went through when the blond tapped him on his shoulder.

"Ano sa, Kakashi-sensei? Are you feeling alright?" a crease appeared on Naruto's forehead as he peered at the other man.

"Ah, Naruto-kun. I'm fine, just thinking," his eye crinkled up as if in amusement, but Naruto decided that there was definitely less of a curve to it than it would have when he was truly happy.

"Thinking? About tonight?" it seemed that is was a brilliant stroke of genius on Naruto's part as Kakashi decided to shrug at his response instead of verbally replying. _Oh-ho! Now I _know_ something is wrong._

But alas, Naruto was distracted by Kakashi's next line, "I believe, Naruto-kun, that you should keep a tighter hold of Sasuke-kun. There's no telling what he may be up to these days. Little bastard," he muttered his last couple of words, just below the range of Naruto's hearing in his preoccupation.

"Up to these days? What do you mean, up to these days?" narrowed eyes greeted Kakashi as Naruto walked closer to his teacher, tension apparent in his every movement. "Maa, maa, calm down, Naruto. I didn't mean anything by it." Kakashi put his hands up in an attempt to calm his student down.

"Don't lie. You're bad at it."

"Now, now, Naruto, there's no reason to get so uptight, it was just a passing comment. Honestly."

"Kakashi-sensei."

"Yes, Naruto-kun?"

"Ka-ka-shi sen-sei."

"Wow, would you look at the time! I'm late for a meeting. I'll see you tonight, Naruto-kun! Ja!"

"Kakashi-sensei! Don't you run from me!"

A pause.

"Well, you don't have to chase me!"

------

"And that's why we're late to dinner." Naruto finished his story calmly in the face of an irate Sasuke and an anxious Iruka. Kakashi decided that it would be best to stand behind the blond, hand resting on the doorknob to the front door.

"Do you honestly think that I'm going to **believe** that story?" breathing heavily, it was quite obvious that Sasuke was not feeling very pleased. The throbbing vein at the side of his forehead was also a good indication. "You have been hanging out with Kakashi-sensei way too often. How else would you explain that a dying _duck_ just _happened_ to fly into Kakashi's path while you chased him! And it just so _happened_ that he **tripped** over it – a Jounin like _him_ – and you _fell_ over him and you just conveniently were on the top of a **hill** and rolled DOWN? Then you're telling me that there just _happened_ to be a lake at the bottom of the hill and it _happened_ to be a site of an oil spill and you **fell** into it! And you decided that it would a good time to **_spar_**! What the _hell_ was going through your minds! And this is if the story was true! Which, by the way cannot be since the nearest species of ducks is fifty miles away, Konohagakure doesn't have _hills_, it has _mountains_ and THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO LOGICAL REASON WHY THERE WOULD BE AN OIL SPILL IN A LAKE SINCE WE DON"T TRANSPORT ENOUGH OIL AT ONE TIME TO COVER EVEN A PORTION OF THE LAKES HERE! _Are you out of your bleeding minds?_ Do you have no sense of credibility! Do you not understand what a **good** lie is and what an unbelievably, horribly, **crappy** lie is! Don't you think we _at least_ deserve a **decent** lie? Do you think we're _fools_!"

Midway into Sasuke's speech, he had taken to grasping Naruto's collar and shaking him on every word he emphasized. Iruka hung back, watching with amazed eyes while Kakashi tried to inch his way out through the door.

Until, of course, the Uchiha snapped his head towards the non-escaping ninja and positively _snarled_. "You stop right there or the only secret you'll be left to have is where your not-so-secret hideout is in an attempt to escape! For the last three hours, I've slaving away in the kitchen trying to make a good meal for us to have together and this is how you repay me! With dirty, smelly clothes and shoes tracking mud all over my front lawn and hallway! I try to be pleasant and you give me this shit? Get into the living room!" When Kakashi started to move, the brunet barked out a sharp, "Never mind, get yourself into the bathroom and make yourself at least a little presentable!"

"As for you!" he turned back to the blond in his hands, "You go upstairs and take a long shower and change into some decent colored clothes – and that means not orange – and get your ass down here within the hour or you won't have food or anything even closely **related** to sex for the next month." When Sasuke saw Naruto open his mouth in retaliation, he continued, "And if I hear anything that sounds like a protest out of your mouth in the next 48 hours, you can expect yourself to be delivered to Sakura's door with a handwritten note from me explaining in great detail _exactly_ why you're there. Now get!"

The blond stumbled a little from Sasuke's abrupt release of his shirt and immediately scowled at him. But a threatening step towards the shoe cabinet where a pack of paper and pens resided in the top drawer caused Naruto to immediately retract the scowl and sprint up the stairs, towards the bathroom.

"Sasuke-kun? Wasn't that a little too much?" Iruka asked with a worried look. He wasn't, to say the least, startled when Sasuke turned towards him with a devious smirk on his face.

"Of course not, Iruka-sensei! They deserved it for returning so late and in such a disarray!" Sasuke waved his hand nonchalantly, walking towards the dining room. Iruka followed a few steps behind, an inquisitive look on his face.

"But _why_ did you do it? I came early to help you and the dinner didn't take long to cook. And the floors were already laid with plastic when you found out from Konohamaru that there really was a dead duck and a lake at the bottom of a hill with an oil spill where Kakashi-sensei and Naruto were fighting. And the only reason why there were those things was because they had mistakenly ran too far from the center of Konohagakure." Iruka walked into the dining room and was forcefully sat down by Sasuke.

"Iruka-sensei, you still have a lot to learn, don't you?" A smile played at Sasuke's lips when Iruka donned an indignant look, "I do not!"

"What was the longest relationship you've had with someone? A romantic relationship?" a blush was all the answer Sasuke needed, "There are some things that you'll come to learn. And the first thing is to never give your partner all the advantages. Whether you're uke, seme, or a mix of both, you have to learn that sometimes, you have to grasp an opportunity as you see it. I was simply following that guideline. Besides," Sasuke added with a cheeky grin, "how else will I get Naruto to do anything for me for the next 48 hours?"

"Sasuke-kun!" Iruka's eyes widened at the implications and a slight blush started to carry its way across his face. A blush that grew exponentially when Sasuke bent down and whispered, "I'll be sure to tell you _all_ about it when you get together with Kakashi-sensei."

"What...?" His exclamation was cut off by a disturbingly cheerful tone from Sasuke. "Let's start setting up, Ir_u_ka-sen_sei_!" A wink and Sasuke flounced off – _flounced! Flounced?_ - into the kitchen. A feeling crept over Iruka and he turned to the living room entrance to see Kakashi looking a bit... miffed. A smile flitted across Iruka's face before he rose to enter the kitchen as well. Meeting Sasuke along the way, a knowing smile flickered across his face and an answering smirk confirmed his suspicions. Kakashi was _jealous_ of his student. It was a fact to be used and manipulated in whichever way he felt like.

Ten minutes later, a clothed Naruto ran down the stairs to be greeted with the sight of a spread of food that was absolutely drool-worthy. Covering half of the very large dining table, the colors and aromas of the different dishes, each showcasing different foods blew Naruto's mind away. He suddenly felt very bad for getting back so late and so dirty. Which Sasuke knew, if that arrogant turn of the head and hidden smirk was any indication.

None of which Naruto saw since he was a bit too entranced by the food displayed in front of him. The food was probably also the reason why he didn't notice the strange seating arrangement. Sasuke and Iruka were never too close as teacher-student, so it was a bit peculiar that they sat next to each other while Kakashi and Naruto sat across from them. A glance from Kakashi to Iruka received a shrug and a guileless smile in reply.

"Itadakimasu!"

And with that, the meal began... along with the interesting noises. It seemed that the combined abilities of Sasuke and Iruka together created a scrumptiously delectable meal for the palate. It was quite an understatement to say that Naruto was in absolute bliss if the noises he were emitting were anything to go by. Even Kakashi took the time to pull down his mask and take in each bite as if it was the last bite he would be eating for a while.

Then again, with Sasuke backing up Iruka, it's hard to tell.

After the first few apparently orgasmic minutes, a small conversation started between the members of the table covering the most expansive range of topics one could think of. When the meal was almost done, Sasuke stretched and kicked Naruto in the shins, scowling at him before signaling something. The blond started to scowl in return before realizing both the purpose of the signal and Sasuke's... promise.

Clearing his throat, he got up and walked to the other side of the table before bending down to whisper into Iruka's ears. To Kakashi's astonishment – and secret delight – the Chuunin started to blush at his words and it was right then and there that Kakashi decided he didn't like any of his students anymore. Not one bit.

The reason why was still something he didn't want to touch with a ten-foot stick. (Although his subconscious would like to note that the ten-foot stick used to be a thirty-foot stick. Ten minutes ago, in fact.)

"Naruto! Behave yourself." Iruka attempted to be strict with his former student, but couldn't help the blush that persisted to reside on his face.

"But Iruka-sensei! You have to promise me first! Promise!" Naruto pouted cutely, melting the hearts of everyone at the table... excluding Kakashi as he appeared to be glaring daggers through the blond. But his heart melted into a puddle anyway when Iruka gave Naruto a soft, adoring smile and replied, "Alright, alright. You better hope it goes well though."

Naruto laughed and hugged Iruka, "It will." All of the sudden, he turned towards Kakashi and smirked, with a totally different tone from before, he said, "I guarantee that it will work."

The Jounin blinked, shocked at the change in attitude, but with Iruka oblivious, he couldn't do anything except narrow his eyes at him in suspicion. A thought suddenly struck him and he turned his head towards Sasuke's direction only to discover that he wasn't at his spot. Confused, he looked out the doorways in time to see Sasuke walk out with dessert in his arms.

Immediate drool attack.

It was always said that the best things were the simplest and Kakashi always held this in faith, but never for food. He was now completely converted by sight in front of him. In the tray that Sasuke held, there were four dishes that each contained two scoops of what looked like French Vanilla, topped with a tantalizing dollop of caramel that slowly moved its way down the sides of the ice cream. The rich tan color itself was a sight to see. Then, on top of the caramel, sprinkled pieces of chocolate – milk, dark, _and_ white, apparently – generously covered what the caramel couldn't. And on the very top, a dark red cherry with its stem intact was placed in such a way as to draw the eyes from the stem down towards the bottom of the plate where pieces of artfully arranged, perfectly sliced mangoes resided.

The contrast of colors were almost enough to make Kakashi feel satisfied. That was, of course, right before he noticed the can of whipped cream innocently hiding besides the four dishes. Which in turn was hiding a dish of smooth, melted chocolate and lush, red strawberries.

"Sasuke! You made dessert! You shouldn't have, you already did so much for us," nevertheless, Iruka grinned at Sasuke, taste buds already eager to be blessed with the dessert. Both Naruto and Kakashi started in surprise, when had Iruka become familiar enough with Sasuke that he didn't attach a suffix to his name? They were further surprised – and a tad suspicious – by Sasuke's reply.

"It was no problem, Iruka. It's my pleasure to be able to serve you..." Sasuke paused smoothly, "A complete meal, _including_ dessert."

Sasuke, and to a lesser extent Iruka, were amused by the red color both Naruto and Kakashi turned when Sasuke paused and the almost inaudible sigh of relief that came when he finished his sentence.

_He was right, it's fun to play with them._ Iruka thought, pleasantly smiling at Sasuke all the while. Sasuke smiled back at him, all the while ignoring the furious signals from Naruto. He set a dish in front of everybody, including the now seated Naruto who was still staring at Sasuke heatedly. "Eat up, everybody, wouldn't want the ice cream go to waste, now would we." The Uchiha gave an uncharacteristically toothy grin before scooping up ice cream to eat. The others, still slightly disturbed by Sasuke's huge smile, was disturbed even more so when he moaned after tasting the ice cream.

Uchiha Sasuke _moaned_ in complete _ecstasy_ because of _ice cream_. And it wasn't a simple moan, of course it wasn't. Nothing he did was simple. Quite amazingly, within a space of a few seconds, the men in the room gained flashes of dark pleasures and intimate caresses. Breathy sighs and lightning-quick shivers. Desperate pants and lustful stares. It was when they opened they eyes – not knowing when they did so – and met Sasuke's slightly pleasure-clouded eyes that they all scrambled to find something to distract themselves. Unfortunately – or fortunately, depending on how you looked at it – the only thing left to do was to eat dessert.

Which perhaps at the moment was not the smartest thing to do as when the crisp, natural sweetness of the vanilla ice cream and the smooth, heavy taste of caramel and chocolate mixed together hit their tongues, their taste buds positively danced with delight. The bite of mangoes at the end caused all the flavors of the ice cream to blend together perfectly.

_The simple pleasures in life really _are_ the best._

As expected, Sasuke was the first one to finish his dish of dessert, and as was only right, he immediately started on the dish of chocolate covered strawberries. After a pause – in which he was really just waiting for everyone to take notice of him – he picked up the can of whipped cream and squirted a dollop of it onto the tip of the strawberry. As if completely unaware of his audience, he put the tip of the strawberry in his mouth slowly sucked on it, drawing in the whipped cream he had placed on it only moments before. Taking out the strawberry, now completely free of whipped cream and the bottom half, his tongue peeked out for a moment before he bit his bottom lip, as if savoring the taste.

It was apparent that the sexual tension in the room went up a few notches.

Nonchalantly, Sasuke opened his eyes, "Oh, sorry. Did you want the strawberries?" and then he pushed the dish of strawberries towards the open-mouthed Naruto. Clearing his throat a few times, it took Naruto several tries before he managed to stutter out a "Thanks".

Solemn-faced once again, he turned to Iruka, "How was the dessert, Iruka-sensei?"

"It was delicious, Sasuke. I'll have to ask you to show me how you make it."

"Not a problem."

Kakashi, watching the exchange, raised an eyebrow at the appearance of a suffix from Sasuke, and the continual lack from Iruka. Wiping his mouth with a napkin, he spoke up, "Thank you for the meal, Sasuke... kun. It was great."

A smirk appeared on Sasuke's face, "Of course. It was no trouble at all."

Done with his portion of the dessert, and wanting Kakashi and Iruka to leave, Naruto stood up and started clearing the table, "Why don't you guys go into the living room? I can clean up here." The others bowed their heads in gratitude before moving into the living room. Before exiting, Sasuke gave Naruto a kiss on the cheek, and smiling deviously said, "Liked the show?"

Naruto could only watch as Sasuke made his way out of the dining room, dishes in his hand and mouth slightly opened. "Sneaky bastard," he muttered to himself, but even he couldn't hold back the pleased smile on his lips.

------

"We have a few hours before the moon's at its high point, do you want to watch a movie?" Sasuke, the ever perfect host, asked his two guests.

After a moment of indecision, Iruka agreed and asked what he had with him. Upon a few moments of a discussion that Kakashi had no way of entering, they decided on a mainly action, semi-romantic movie. By the time Naruto returned from the kitchen with hands smelling of lemon detergent, the movie was running and everyone was sitting on the couch.

Seeing that there was a tiny space available for him, he decided that he would be much more comfortable... sitting on Sasuke's lap. There were a few moments of shuffling before they all settled in, all as comfortable as they could be. Sasuke and Naruto were especially comfortable.

Halfway through the movie, Sasuke leaned into Naruto's ear under the pretense of whispering 'sweet nothings' into his ear.

"Tell Iruka to do it now."

"Are you sure?"

"It's now or never."

"Alright." Naruto bent backwards, stretching his arms and brushing his hand across Iruka's thighs. "Sorry, 'ruka-sensei."

A little startled, Iruka glanced at Naruto, before his words registered, "Aa, it's okay."

Starting from that moment, Iruka inched closer and closer to Kakashi while Sasuke and Naruto took up more and more space. This went on for quite some time until Naruto was sitting on the couch and Iruka was almost on Kakashi's lap. Distracted by the surprising ending of the movie, Kakashi and to an extent, Iruka, didn't notice their proximity, so when Iruka tried to get up, he accidentally placed his hand on a very.. sensitive area.

There was a sharp intake and nothing more before Iruka began to apologize profusely, a bright red blush taking its place on his face. Entranced by the image of Iruka with his hair down – it had loosened to the point that the rubber band fell off during the movie - and cute blush, the Jounin spared a glance towards his students to find them falling asleep and lifted a finger to be placed on Iruka's lips. Immediately, his apologies stopped and his eyes crossed in an attempt to see the finger on his mouth.

Kakashi chuckled before pulling Iruka down into his lap. Iruka grunted a little, but fell easily against Kakashi and they were left to stare at each other.

A small whisper came from Kakashi's lips, soft as if he didn't want the other to hear, "Have I ever told you how cute you are when you blush? And how adorable you are when you worry about little things?"

Iruka's face turned a pleasantly pink hue as he replied, "Just as I've never told you that you look beautiful in the moonlight- mask or not." Kakashi's hand came up to caress his cheek as he spoke and Iruka leaned into it ever so slightly. A thumb brushed underneath his eyelid for the longest of moments before Iruka broke the silence by opening his eyes and saying, "Are you going to kiss me or not?"

Startled into a laugh, Kakashi leaned in to do just that. The academy teacher met him half way and their lips were crushed together almost painfully, but oh-so-sweetly. It was easy to get caught up in the other's heat and even easy to accept the questing tongue that brushed by every nook and cranny of Iruka's mouth, drawing out long moans and pants when they parted time and time again.

After a particularly long kiss, they rested their foreheads against each other, staring without a break. Kakashi's hands had, by that time, crawled its way under Iruka's shirt and in turn, Iruka's tanned hands loosely gripped the silver-gray hair.

"As much as I'm glad that you've finally found each other. I would appreciate it if you guys don't start going at it on my couch," there was a pause from Sasuke, "The new couch that I just recently bought."

The two teachers turned their heads towards the two matured teens and smiled. "But it could give you guys some inspiration for your own... activities." Kakashi winked at them – or blinked... it was hard to tell since although his mask was off, the hitai-ate was not – while Iruka gasped and slapped Kakashi upside the head. "Don't feed them your dirty thoughts, Kakashi."

Eye crinkling up into a curve, the three other occupants of the room were finally able to see what a smile from the Jounin looked like. Quite simply, it was enough to make everyone else smile. "You're right, of course, Iruka. I shall _act_ on my dirty thoughts with you then."

A wide-eyed look and a poof later, the two teachers disappeared from Sasuke and Naruto's living room.

"I think that went rather well, don't you, Naruto?" Sasuke turned around at the lack of response and his own lips curved into another smile when he saw that Naruto had fallen asleep again while the two teachers left. He picked Naruto up and slowly carried him to their bedroom. Reaching it, he set the blond into the bed, tucking him in and smoothing his hair. He always felt more concerned about the blond than anything else and it seemed that it had caused him to become almost motherly.

Sasuke made sure to only act that way when Naruto was either unconscious, or on the verge.

Leaving the room as silently as he could - which is pretty quiet – he descended the stairs to continue cleaning the house. Dishes stood ready and waiting on the racks to be placed in its proper places and movies littered the front of the television set. He cleaned up the areas quietly and slowly, thus he was slightly startled by the sudden reappearance of Kakashi, this time in more casual clothing. His sleepwear, to be exact.

Raising an eyebrow, Sasuke continued to work around Kakashi, waiting for his reason for returning. It came when Kakashi sheepishly chuckled and said, "I came back to get our shoes."

"You know where they are."

"You wound me, Sasuke-kun. From your words, I would think that you don't want me here." Kakashi dramatically placed the back of his hand on his forehead, an effect that was greatly ruined by his smirk. But with no further retort from the brunet, he pouted slightly and walked towards the front door in search of his shoes. Moments later, he called out a thanks, but was kept from leaving by Sasuke's question.

"Why haven't I felt anything from the seal?"

Stalled by the question, and a little confused, Kakashi turned back to Sasuke, "What do you mean?"

A worried look crossed Sasuke's face as his right hand rose to clutch his shoulder. "For the past few months, there hasn't been anything from the seal. Nothing at all, even with all the chakra I've been using in training or in my missions. Before, even if I had used my chakra for something as simple as walking on water, there was a slight pull from the seal, but now-"

The silver-haired man cut him off abruptly, "You don't know?"

"Know what?" Sasuke's brow drew together in contemplation.

"Naruto hasn't told you?" Sasuke stared at him in confusion, "A few weeks before you guys came clean about your relationship, he had gone on a mission. You should remember that." A nod from the boy prompted Kakashi to continue. "Something happened when he was returning and for some reason, he met up with Orochimaru. The exact details aren't well-known, but apparently, he had taken over a new body recently and was still pretty weak. By chance, Naruto recognized the body he took over and... to make a long story short, along with the Jounin that was specially assigned on the mission, a fight broke out and they managed to take Orochimaru down."

Kakashi glanced at Sasuke with confusion, "Tsunade ordered that the news of his defeat to be kept under wraps, in case it was another fluke, but you should've been told. If I remember correctly, Tsunade specifically ordered Naruto to tell you at an appropriate time. She had wanted to be informed on the status of the cursed seal from both you and Anko."

He paused and watched as the emotions flew across Sasuke's eyes, "Maa, maa, I'm sure he was planning to tell you sometime soon. Maybe he didn't think it was time yet?" But Sasuke's changing expression made him stop in his words and his own forehead to crease. "I think it's best if I left you alone. I'll see you guys later."

And with a 'poof', Kakashi was gone, leaving a confused and apprehensive Sasuke in his wake.

--

"Iruka, I think I did a very bad thing."

--

_What am I supposed to do now?_

_- _

To Be Continued...

* * *

**QY:** Mwahahaha! The end is approaching! Alright... more like the middle. Darn. Anyway, stuff is going to finally start happening, so for those of you who pushed out this far just to wait for _something _interesting to happen, you can pat yourself on the back for being able to wait for so long. And because I'm starting to get on track again: 

_Preview:_ Sasuke has now found out that Naruto's been keeping something from him right when they're beginning to prepare for their newest mission. Naruto becomes confused when certain people around him start acting funny. One couple – Kakashi and Iruka – has finally gotten together, but what about the other? All this and more in the next chapter of Delicious Revenge,

That kinda sounds funny... like a soap opera. :gasp: The horror!

Written: 6/18/05- 7/2/05


	13. Meeting New and Old Friends

**Disclaimer:** See past Disclaimers.

**QY:** I'll have you guys know that I started writing this in bed at 1 am in the morning on 7/25. And everyday after that at the same time. But still... so sorry for the lateness. I promised myself I would post before August, so I didn't get to re-read everything. I'll do it in a few days, so if you see anything obvious, I'll be grateful if you point it out.. Thanks to everyone once again, you guys are the best.

**Warning:** (Considering the SasuNaruSasu fans most of you are...) There is a scene in this chapter that includes Sasuke making out with someone that is not Naruto. Please don't hurt me.

Haven't said this for a while (because I forgot two chapters ago), but there's an OC who will be in this chapter and for the next one or two. This is necessary, and any comments on her will be appreciated. (The ever important question of whether she's a Mary Sue.. or annoying) Anyway, I stole her name from D N Angel, Harada Risa because my naming skills deserves to hide in a hole. **Please note that the Harada Risa in this story is not supposed to represent in any way whatsoever with the Harada Risa in D N Angel. Thank you.**

Somehow, a whole lot of nothing happens, but it still moved the story forward. Interesting how that happens...

Oh man, I almost forgot (actually... I did...). Considering that I said Sasuke and Naruto were 16 at the beginning of the fic and it began in early July, let's say that the two of them are now 17 and I might do side-stories of their birthday celebrations later. Okay? Okay.

**Review Responses** are unfortunately not here. My shoulder hurts really bad, and while I'm sure re-reading the reviews will send my into a giggly fit of happiness, I feel like I want to stay in my in between state. But you guys are totally awesome, and I'm happy that you're still reading this and even reviewing it. Honestly, your reactions to the story usually make me laugh in a good way. I can't fully express my gratitude towards you, so I'll stop now.

But thanks to: **ghostninja85 **(No worries, you didn't weird me out), Tsubaki-chan (XD), **RukaIayLomperGay**, Azamaria-chan (Well, Naruto didn't move in till after a few weeks, but his new bed didn't get any dirty action, no.), **Generally Maz** (I love you too), chibixholic, **Azamiko **(Well, Naruto didn't move in till after a few weeks, but his new bed didn't get any dirty action, no.), Eyes-Of-Truth, **Joonie**, KunochiDreamer, **Puriin**, futaba (Ha! I'm still alive!), **moonep** (Fight, fight, fight!), RuByMoOn17, **Ky0Kichi, **Shi Rurouni of the Aphrodesiac,** Aimi-chan**, Sei the purple Ryu (Your review was amazing. And as soon as I get ink, I'm printing it out and sticking it onto my wall. And I grant you permission to become my first stalkerish-fangirl-devotee-worshipper-thing. You deserve it. I should email you... can I email you?), **Shellyraeleen** (Um, thanks for being honest of the squirrels)

A lot of you are worried about the whole Naruto-not-telling-about-the-seal thing. I can only say one thing. You should.

**Thank you for the death threats. I feel so loved. :smirk:**

* * *

Delicious Revenge --- Chapter XIII --- QianYun 

_**Meeting New and Old Friends**_

It was winter and Sasuke didn't like it. For one thing, he was no way closer to finding out from Naruto the exact details of what Kakashi was talking about that night. For another, winter meant that the time for Naruto and his mission was almost here. He didn't really mind the details of the mission, but now seemed to be the wrong time for them to do something like that. Unfortunately, the mission had already been assigned to them and there was no way of getting out of it. Then again, he didn't really have much to complain about. Naruto was definitely getting the short end of the stick. Although at times, it didn't seem like Naruto cared.

And in truth, the blond really didn't care.

Eating lunch at the restaurant with Sasuke across from him, Naruto's mind played with the possibilities of fun that the mission gave him. Swallowing a grin - and a piece of beef – Naruto slipped his foot out of his sandal, reached across and slid it up Sasuke's leg. Amused by the twitch in the dark-haired man's hand - the one holding his glass, no less – the blond continued to softly trail it up and down Sasuke's leg.

"Naruto, _love_, what are you doing?" A strained smile flitted across the pale face, before it simply disappeared and replaced by a light frown.

The man only blinked innocently at him, which was ruined by the pleased smile, "I'm playing footsie with you, Sasu-chan. Haven't you ever done that before?"

Ignoring the question, Sasuke asked one of his own, "Why?"

Naruto scrunched up his nose in disappointment, he then pouted and said, "Because I'm _bored_ and the lady is already half-an-hour late."

He picked his glass back up and took a sip, "I don't see why you're complaining. We're waiting in a restaurant eating food – expensive food – that she's paying for."

The blond grinned and said, "True." Then he proceeded to signal the waiter and ask for a serving of miso ramen.

"Why are you getting miso ramen in a place like this? I'm sure they have several types of ramen here that you won't get at Ichiraku," Sasuke asked calmly, picking up one of the several house-special rice balls to prove his point.

A lecherous grin stretched across the blond's face, "But I like eating miso ramen when I'm with you. This way, when I kiss you, you'll remember our very first kiss." To the surprise of several not-so-discreet observers and to Naruto's expectation, a rosy blush appeared on Sasuke. A muttered "shut up" from the man only caused Naruto's grin to widen.

But before he could open his mouth to tease Sasuke further, there was a rustle of clothing an a very voluptuous woman appeared at their table, gushing as she approached. "Aren't you guys just so adorable. I must thank Tsunade-sama the next time I see her." When the two men registered her presence, Sasuke sat up straighter – his blush still lingering – and Naruto slipped his foot back into his sandal.

"Harada-san, how nice to see you again." Going against the words he spoke, the dull tone suggested Sasuke's displeasure.

"Now, now, Sasuke-kun. Don;t tell me you're still upset over the last meeting?" The woman, Harada Risa, said teasingly.

Sasuke scowled, "You'll have to excuse me if I don't feel like reliving the experience. It was rather hard to breathe when my face was smashed into your chest." Naruto's jaw dropped as he soundlessly tried to talk. Noticing this, Risa grinned, "Don't worry, I have a hug ready for you too."

Reaching out and pulling the blond's head to her chest and clutching him tightly, Naruto's arms flailed for a few moments before Sasuke yanked him out of her grasp and into his lap.

"Please refrain from harassing my boyfriend."

"Whatever you say, Sasuke-kun." She grinned cheekily and sat in the vacated seat.

"Getting down to business, have you told Naruto what your mission is about?"

He shook his head, "Only a few details."

Risa tittered, "Let me guess, you told him he was going to be seduced and then rescued like a damsel in distress."

A raised eyebrow answered affirmatively.

"My dear Naruto-kun, sometimes, I just wonder how you put up with him. Then again," she pointedly glanced at his wandering hand, "I can see why you're staying."

A blink and a grin later, the blond leaned down to talk into Sasuke's ear, "I like her."

She had heard. "Why thank you, I like you too." When Naruto stared at her in disbelief – he could've sworn he barely spoke with a whisper – she giggled, "Really Naruto-kun, just because I'm hiring shinobi to do some dirty work for me, it doesn't mean I'm completely helpless. Besides, there's no fighting involved with this mission. At least, not much. It's a subterfuge mission, after all."

His face fell slightly, "No fighting? No action?"

"Very little, if any. Although, you might be pleased to hear we are – if you simplify it – pranking someone."

And Naruto perked up, "We are? How? What are we doing? Why are we doing it? Does it involve complete and utter humiliation?"

Risa tittered once again, "My, you _are_ enthusiastic. Wonderful. I'll answer all of your questions, but I think we should move the conversation elsewhere. As comfortable as both of you are, I think Sasuke-kun's legs are falling asleep."

Naruto hopped off with an apologetic grin to Sasuke at her words and started bouncing, "Let's go, let's go!"

"What about your ramen?"

The blond's eyes grew comically wide and he started to wail, "My ramen! I can't leave it!"

Before he could fully go into ramen-deprivation mode, Risa picked up a formerly unnoticed bag and cheerily said, "I ordered your ramen to go and the bill is paid. We're all set, so let's get going!"

Naruto cheered, Sasuke stood and the three left the restaurant. Leaving most of the customers gossiping about the appearance of Harada Risa, Konoha's richest retired shinobi.

* * *

To fully understand the conditions surrounding the mission and other things, there are several things that need to be explained. First and foremost, who the hell is Harada Risa. And hand in hand, how can there be such a thing as a _rich_, **retired**, **_shinobi_**! And to emphasize the extremity ! 

Since it had already been proven – or attempted, anyway – that this story is unlike any other, it is to be expected that the characters would be of a different sort. Harada Risa- bearing no relation to the one in DN Angel, to repeat – was born as a citizen of the Fire country away (far, far away) from Konohagakure. And just like any other good citizen not belonging to a Hidden Village, she didn't know where it was and only just barely knew of its existence. Until one day, quite by chance, she was playing at a pond and a trio of genin and their teacher sprinted right past her yes. Understandably, she was quite frightened and let out a piercing scream, causing the shinobi to stop abruptly and look for danger.

It came in the form of six-year-old Harada Risa. And what a danger it was.

In an attempt to quiet the girl, the genin team – who were on the way back from a mission – spent the afternoon playing with her. It wouldn't be very good, after all, if adults ran over to check on the girl only to find shinobi passing through. Shinobi who were supposed to exist only in the rumors that passed by the town people's ears.

Fortunately, their time spent with her was quiet (and short). Unfortunately... the little girl wouldn't let go of one of the genin's legs. An attempt at the Kawarimi no Jutsu, while it was successful, did not distract her enough so that they could escape. Furthermore, she was even more adamant about keeping them there, or going with them.

Left with no other choice, the shinobi took her back to Konohagakure where she entered the academy while being privately tutored by Sandaime himself. She became so skilled that she took on a frightening load of A-class mission and higher: earning her wealth and fame. At some point, she became weary of the blood and retired, a healthy sum of money following her.

But in truth, that is not what happened. The team shed their gear, donning normal, everyday clothes and took her back to her father. Who just so happened to be one of the wealthiest men in the country. Therefore knowing the truth about the shinobi – having hired the many times before. So when his little girl – who he didn't like all that much (she was beyond spoiled) – informed him she wanted to follow the "cool strangers" he used his position to do just that.

So the team was forced to escort the brat back to Konoha with a lengthy letter for Sandaime. The letter caused him to stroke his beard in wonder before he told Risa that she was now an orphan for all intents and purposes – minus the desolate financial situation.

A few days later she settled into an apartment with a hired nanny and Sandaime's office became furnished with a lot more expensive items.

She was enrolled into the Academy under the threat of a temper tantrum. Needless to say,she barely passed as a genin. However, she was stubborn and managed to push her way up to Chuunin before settling down as a permanent worker in the mission assignment room.

Risa was more or less content, after all, she got to learn many different types of jutsu and use them at least once a say. And then the fateful day came. Her father died wile playing pool and left everything to his daughter in his will. Risa was suddenly very rich. So she gave up being a shinobi and managed to leave Konoha without being labeled as a missing-nin. Mostly because normal citizens didn't know about her an she gave a promise to help Konoha financially whenever they needed it. Including hiring shinobi. Which brings the story to a full circle. Risa had established a societal life: throwing parties, buying the best things, marrying the most sought after guy in the country, basically living _the_ life.

And then she found out something that made her shake in rage. With her power, connections and money, it was only a matter of time before the target of her rage was squashed like a tiny bug.

* * *

The three of them walked most of the way back to Sasuke's house. At their arrival, Risa in her green, backless, shimmery dress settled quite comfortably on their couch as if she owned the place. Sasuke only rolled his eyes at the redhead, but Naruto arrowed his eyes in confusion. 

"So, my dears, let's get to it." Risa smiled brightly, her brown eyes twinkling with delight. She looked to Sasuke, "I assume you want me to explain."

He nodded, "I'll go make some tea."

When he was out of sight, Risa turned to Naruto, a wide smile on her face before it dropped into a vicious scowl. He eyes glazed over a bit and she slammed a fist into the table, cracking it, and growled, "I'll make you suffer."

Naruto's eyes widened in shock and he scrambled away from the slightly crazed looking woman. Having encountered many scary women in his life, he nearly stuttered as he spoke, "Harada-san, are you okay?"

Blinking, she looked up at him. "Oh! I'm so sorry, I don't know what came over me." She lifted her fist and winced a little at the sound of falling splinters. "I'll get you guys a new table."

Deciding she was alright and still sane, he waved it off. "It's okay, I never liked it anyway. So what is the mission about?"

Risa took a breath and smooth out her dress, "It's simple. I want you to completely, totally, utterly and thoroughly humiliate and shame my husband."

There was a moment of silence. "Your... husband? What did he do to you?"

It was the wrong question asked, for she suddenly launched into a fast, long, angry speech about something or the other. Naruto assumed it was about her husband and cheating. Risa repeated those words enough times for him to catch on. At that moment, Sasuke returned with a tray bearing three cups and a teapot.

An eyebrow rose, "You asked about her husband, didn't you?" There was a small nod and Sasuke sighed, "this may take a while."

Sure enough, it was fifteen minuted, two refills of the cups and a bowl of ramen later before she stopped. She picked up a cup, sipped, set it down and turned to look at the two seventeen-year olds. "So the plan is that you, Naruto, will show off your shapely biceps and grab the bastard's attention. Let him seduce you for a little, but then reject his advances. Rudely, harshly, physically. But the brutal part of this plan is that I want Sasuke-kun to rescue you and beat him up. All on camera, which will of course be broadcasted live to the guests. Obviously, it ca;t be too violent, just need to put on a bit of a show. This will be taking place at the first winter themed party I throw, which is in two weeks."

Risa paused for a breath, but before she could continue, Sasuke pointed out the time. "It's three o'clock, you're going to muss your appointment with Tsunade-sama." Her face twisted into an "oh, shit" expression and she ran out with a good-bye tossed over her shoulder.

"I hope there's more details involved with the mission than that."

"Yeah, there are several things you should know..."

------

Three days later, every detail about the mission that could be planned was finished with. Now Naruto and Sasuke were left with noting to do. Until...

"Hey, Sasuke. Want to go out and act cuddly?"

The dark-haired man looked at him suspiciously, "There's another part to that."

"Let's have a fight afterwards."

Sasuke yawned and propped himself up, only to be pulled down into Naruto's embrace. "About what?" The blond thought for a moment. "How about... we raise their suspicions a little bit again?"

A smirk, "You mean..."

Naruto grinned widely. "Exactly."

"Alright, let's go then."

There was no movement from the men.

"Sasuke, you need to get off of me first."

"Naruto, you need to _let go of me_ first."

"Oh."

----

The village's favorite couple was out and about on a date again after so long.

Sasuke and Naruto walked around their normal area, greeting owners and customers alike. Through it all, Sasuke maintained physical contact with the blond– either an arm around the shoulder, a hand at Naruto's waist... his lips attached to Naruto's neck. The women they met giggled and cooed behind their backs sometimes in front of them. A select few were burning in jealously until Sasuke did something to make the blond moan and gasp, upon which their eyes just glazed over. Most of the men snickered and gave suggestive nudges to each other. Others- mostly around the late teens to early twenties – scowled at Naruto's submissiveness.

Before, that is, Naruto noticed their comments and whispered into the Uchiha's ear, who immediately scowled, arguing for a few moments. Then he stalked over to where a group of their friends had rested for the afternoon, drinking, eating and laughing.

The dark-haired man stood in front of another similarly dark-haired man, growled "This was not my idea", before promptly sitting in Neji's lap to start making out with him.

All with Naruto watching from the street, a suspiciously pleased smile appearing.

Sasuke spent several moments coaxing the lips up him to move. He slid forward a little more closer, slid his pale hands into the long, luxurious black hair and slipped Neji his tongue. A long, drawn-out moan rang out through the now silent streets. At the sound, a horrified Hyuuga opened his eyes and started to struggle.

However, before any progress could be made, the hands that were previously in Neji's hair sneaked its way down and then back up - this time, inside – Neji's shirt. Then he did something with his tongue which apparently felt _very_ nice as a broken moan rumbled from Neji's throat. Feeling the body under him relax, Sasuke lifted his mouth – eliciting a **whimper** – before trailing from his lips down the pale, soft neck and the peek of a collarbone. A nip and a suck, then Sasuke dove back into the man's mouth. It was a hard, rough kiss, something most aptly described as the Uchiha ravaging Neji's mouth. One last groan from Neji and Sasuke pulled away with a loud smack of their lips.

Quite calmly, he shimmied, - yes, shimmied – off of his lap and walked back to Naruto. Grabbing the blond's hand, he walked away coolly, as if he hadn't just done something completely unusual. The observers, as a collective, glanced back at Neji to be greeted with the sight of a thoroughly ravished and sated shinobi. Calm, collected, almost cold Hyuuga Neji was molested into a dazed and high state, leaving everyone with a clear understanding of why exactly Naruto was so submissive.

After all, if kissing Neji garnered this type of reaction, imagine how amazing the sex was.

------

"That was really hot"

Sasuke rolled his eyes, "Only you would think your boyfriend making out with another guy was hot, Naruto."

The blond grinned at him, "You only say that because you didn't see yourself. So how was it anyway? Is Neji a good kisser?"

The man grunted in reply.

Somehow, Naruto got his answer from that. "It looked pretty good and it seems like you enjoyed it from your response."

"Whatever."

"Sasuke, Sasuke, what ever will i do with you?"

"I can think of a few things," Sasuke said nonchalantly.

Naruto gaped at him for a moment, "Pervert."

"You love me this way," he put his arm around the other man's waist, brining them closer.

"Yeah, yea- but Sasu-chan, I thought you wanted to do it! And who am I to deny you what you want? His lips twitched and Sasuke scowled for a jiffy.

"Naru-chan, you have to understand! That was in the past! Now that I have you, none of that matter anymore. I love you, and only you." His voice softened at the end, the words ringing with sincerity.

Blue eyes softened with the declaration and he replied, "And I love only you."

They gravitated towards each other, lips parting in anticipation. But before they could seal their pseudo promises with a kiss, they were interrupted. "Oh! You guys are so adorable!"

The two men turned so fast, they almost got whiplash- surprise lining their body, having forgotten about their observer. At that moment, Naruto's cheeks turned pink, "Sakura-chan! Mou!"

She giggled, "If you guys are done with the the mushy love scenes, Iruka-sensei told me he wanted to talk to you, but he couldn't find you."

"Really, Sakura-chan?"

"Yup! He said he'll wait for you at the academy."

"Thank you, Sakura. We'll head ov- How are you and Lee doing?"

Sakura blinked at the sudden change of subject, then blushed. But for an odd reason, a crease appeared on her forehead and she appeared worried.

"Sakura... chan?"

A bright smile, obviously forced, appeared before she replied, "We're doing fine! Tanks for asking. I have to run some errands, I'll see you guys around!"

Sasuke and Naruto watched her walk away in silence.

"That was weird."

"Hm."

The younger of the two peered at the other, but when he couldn't read anything off of his expression, he sighed, "Let's go see what Iruka-sensei wants us for."

There was no verbal response, but Sasuke started towards the direction of the academy.

Something was off.

-

Sometime during their walk to the academy, Sasuke had twined his fingers with Naruto; he thumb caressing the back of his hand continuously. The blond bit his lip to refrain from laughing, but it was ticklish, damnit! Amazingly, the two reached the academy without any detours, mishaps, or seemingly random bouts of laughter from Naruto.

Sasuke, on the other hand, was unlucky enough to have full, solid, worrying thoughts on his mind. Iruka's request had unwittingly led him to think about Kakashi and in a puzzling, simple way, led back to the issue of confronting with Naruto. Needless to say, he was a bit unwilling. Thankfully, before his thoughts could really drag him down , Naruto had caught sight of Iruka and they both managed to make it seem as if they hadn't seen each other for years instead of the days they really were. Sasuke smiled softly, but stiffened when he noticed Kakashi's arrival.

To his relief, the little "reunion" was apparently over and as impatient as ever, Naruto inquired to his reason for being there. Iruka broke out into a blush, a small smile fluttering on his lips. "It's nothing, really. I just wanted to thank you or the dinner we had a few weeks ago. It... helped me – us – to figure out certain things."

Naruto grinned uncontrollably, "Aw, we didn't do anything. It was all you guys. _All of it_."

Sasuke smirked, knowing that Naruto meant more than their initiative to actually get together. Their actions in Sasuke and Naruto's time of need was all the reason they needed. At this point, a person would wonder what the point of that was. After all, their teachers were _happy_ now. But the two men had something up their sleeves; a card they had yet to reveal.

Until then, it was fun to act like the nice guy. The four of them chatted for a while, updating each other on their lives.

Well... Naruto and Iruka chatted, Kakashi randomly commented on things and Sasuke sat there listening. At some point, it was decided that upon Sasuke and Naruto's return from their mission, they would go out for dinner together. A dramatic goodbye later, the younger couple left the area, heading in the general direction of their home.

But when Naruto's stomach declared itself hungry with a large growl, Sasuke smiled faintly and volunteered to get him ramen. Confusion on Sasuke's peculiarity were brushed off at the thought of ramen and within a few moments, he was left by himself to walk home. Whistling cheerfully, he was quite relaxed and comfortable when Neji suddenly appeared.

"Neji!" Naruto snickered to himself, "What's up?"

Neji gazed steadily at Naruto, thoughts turning around in his head. The blond was always a weird one, but what he did today officially took the top place of weird things. Telling his boyfriend to make out with him? When Naruto knew that Neji had an attraction for him?

Unless... he didn't know.

His lips parted tentatively, should he tell? But in the end, he had nothing to lose and just possibly, everything to gain. "Why did you tell Uchiha to kiss me?" Neji mentally patted himself on the back for sounding so calm.

Naruto smiled brightly, "Why would I ask my boyfriend to kiss you? It could very well been his own idea."

"Naruto. I have no time to play games with me. Why are you playing with me?" The dark-haired man narrowed his eyes, "Don't mess with my feelings."

"Your... feelings? I wasn't aware that I was doing anything that would affect your feelings." The blond's brow creased as he frowned, uncertainty and confusion coming over him. Quite subconsciously, he started backing away from Neji, ready to sprint at a moment's notice, or so it seemed.

"You can't honestly tell me that nothing I've ever done has affected you. Can't you see the way you affect _me_? For the past few years, I've been changing bit by bit, all because of you. And.. you haven't seen it?" A pained look crossed Neji's visage, making Naruto worry.

He spoke hesitantly, "Neji... I don't understand. What are you talking about?"

Abruptly, he looked away from Naruto and to the moon, "Have you ever noticed how it is that the moon can't shine without the sun? It relies absolutely on the light that the sun gives off, if it weren't for that, it would never be noticed. Lingering in the darkness of space, always there, but never seen. But then again," he turned back to face Naruto, who was a few inches further from before, "There wouldn't be anything to take notice of the disappearance of the moon, since without the sun, nothing at all can survive. So can it be considered fate?"

Wide-eyed, Naruto frantically interrupted Neji, "Whoa, whoa. Who's saying anything about fate? Neji..." He paused, watching the other man carefully. "I'm with Sasuke because I love him, no other reason... Please, don't think otherwise."

Neji bit his tongue, a bit of negative emotions creeping over him. He shook his head after a moment. "Of course, I'm sorry to bother you."

Naruto blinked at his words and by the time he looked again, it was as if Neji was never there. But Sasuke was.

"Did you ever wonder if all this didn't happen... would we really be together?" a quiet voice carried its way over to Naruto and he turned halfway in acknowledgment. He smiled at the sky and the trees brushing the edges of his vision.

"We're always together. We just might not realize it." Two arms came up to embrace him from behind, a head settling itself into the crook of his neck. He leaned back a little, watching the setting sun. The warmth emanating from Sasuke soothed his emotions.

"No matter what, you're always my most important person. Always."

And he felt the smile against his neck, a similar one appearing on his own face.

"So!" he said, breaking the moment, "Where's my ramen?"

To Be Continued...

* * *

**QY**- You know, I actually wrote out an entire outline for this chapter. And when I wrote the actual chapter... nothing is the same. Tch. 

Right, I don't remember if I said this, but instead of the 3 endings that aren't separate which I told you about a few hcapters before, there'll be only one ending to this story and an one-shot sequel. (Which will turn out to be like.. 30 pages long, I bet) I figured I should do a one-shot prequel, multi-chap, one-shot sequel. Like my original plans. Funny how everything is going back to how I first thought it out to be. I figured out that if I did three endings, there'll be too much angst in the second and not enough fluff in the third. So.. yeah. Anyway, we'll see. But in case anyone wants to know, I figure there's going to be around 25 chapters to this. Hopefully.

Damn, I knew I would forget this. The whole miso ramen thing is based off a character interview Toriyama translated in which Sasuke is asked what the kiss tasted like, and he said miso ramen.

Written: 7/25/05 to 7/31/05 (This felt pathetically short, but apparently, it's average length. Chapters 9-11 were flukes I tell you, flukes!)


End file.
